


A Song of Storm and Fire

by Anonymous



Series: Storms & Fires [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Canon Rewrite but very close to canon, Coming Out, Enthusiastic Consent, M/M, Tentative Dirty Talk, Zuko is an angry kitten and Ren is a calm beast, discussing gender, exploration of canon religion lore, healing trauma together, learning sex together, the relationships with sokka are slow burns with LOTS of pining, the smut is so fluffy you'll die
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-21
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:15:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 40
Words: 66,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24201922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: "Someone's coming!" Toph sensed with her feet. "Quick! Everybody, hide!"A black silhouette appeared from behind the cliff and walked through the temple, stopping in its tracks right in front of their hiding spot. It was a human of rather small frame, face and body hidden under several layers of black clothing. Only their eyes were visible, and they were sparkling like stars."Excuse me, have you seen Zuko around here?" they asked with a light and soft voice, obviously knowing that the teens were hiding behind that pillar."Zuko?!" Sokka's head popped out. "Don't tell me Zuko is here?!""Who are you?!" Katara said as she came out, threatening to use her water whip.The silhouette removed their hood and the scarf in front of their mouth, revealing the face of a beautiful teenager with short white hair and a bright smile."I'm Zuko'sboyfriend!"
Relationships: Sokka (Avatar)/Original Character(s), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Zuko (Avatar)/Original Character(s), background Sokka/Suki
Series: Storms & Fires [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1782391
Comments: 148
Kudos: 180
Collections: Anonymous





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The story follows the canon very closely, but Zuko is two years older and the events of ATLA last a few months longer. Both the comics and LoK are mostly ignored. When needed, additional tags and trigger warnings are mentioned before each chapter.
> 
> Sokka/Zuko really gets going at chapter 30, it takes time to get to it but it’s **not** a background relationship, so get ready for some intense pining! (Start at chapter 21 if you decide to skip ahead, or else you will skip an important plot reveal!)

"Why are you here?!"

The room was dark, only lit by candles. The walls, ceiling and floor were made of metal, and although there were multiple crimson curtains hanging down from them, the room still looked a lot like a large prison cell. Standing behind the closed door, two teenage boys were staring at each other. One of them was the prince of the Fire Nation. The other was his childhood friend. His hair was arranged in a braid hanging over his shoulder, as white as snow, and his eyes shined like a blade in the moonlight. He was the same height as the prince, although he was of a smaller frame.

"I came to the dock as soon as I heard of your banishment," he said with a voice so soft he could easily pass off as a girl. "Your boat was leaving, so I jumped on it and hid until I could find you alone, Prince Zuko."

Zuko's feelings were chaotic. "The news of my banishment is spreading fast," he observed, a deep scowl on his face. What did he expect, really? If any Fire Nation citizen didn't know it yet, they would learn about his banishment very soon, no doubt about that.

"I heard you were wounded," his friend said. "I brought some medicine."

Zuko was reluctant to remove the bandages that ate half of his face, but he showed none of it. The boy moved closer, rising his hand.

"May I?" he asked softly.

Zuko glanced at his hand, and gave a small nod, looking down.

Very gently, the boy unwrapped the many layers of fabric, revealing the scar of a severe burn over the prince's left eye. It had the shape of a large hand, eating the skin from his cheek to his forehead, swallowing his entire ear. His left eyebrow had completely vanished. The wound was only three days old, and Zuko knew it must have looked incredibly gross. But the boy only showed worry on his face.

"Does it hurt? Are you okay?" he asked.

Zuko's entire body ached. The burnt skin on his face felt like it hadn't stopped melting. The memory of the sweat dripping all over his skin because of the fear, like acid rain, was constantly showering his entire body. Air had been punched out of his chest and still hadn't come back, three days later. He couldn't eat, he couldn't drink, he couldn't sleep anymore. All he saw when he closed his eyes was a giant flaming hand approaching him, slow and unstoppable. And telling his friend all of this was far above his strength.

The white-haired teen delicately took Zuko's hand and pulled him to the small bathroom in the corner of the room. He washed his hands in the sink and picked up a bottle that looked like ointment. Zuko stayed silent, avoiding his gaze.

After a few moments deep in his thoughts, the boy put down the bottle and instead looked up at the prince's face. He gently put his hand over the unscarred side, covering Zuko's right eye, and asked, "Can you still see?"

Zuko tried his best not to let his emotions spill out. "... I can't," he replied, and his voice wavered so slightly he dared hoping it wasn't too noticeable. His vision was quite damaged by the wound, he could only see faint splotches of light.

His friend reached for a little pouch hidden in his sleeve, and pulled out a small crystal vial.

"This is something my parents gave me. I don't know where it comes from, but they told me it could heal any wound. It's been used already, so there's only one drop left. Prince Zuko, let me use it on your eye."

A sharp pain sprouted in Zuko's throat, the sourness of guilt simmering in his mouth. Nobody should have to take care of him. But he knew he couldn't refuse his friend. He wouldn't let him. Swallowing down, the prince bent his head back, and felt a watery drop fall into his wounded eye. He squinted. It felt cold, but it didn't hurt. He heard someone knock on the metal door of his room. There was only one person on this ship who would dare knocking on his door today.

"Uncle Iroh!" Zuko called, annoyed, then he heard the metal door open and footsteps approach. He opened his eyes again. As he expected, the boy with white hair was nowhere to be seen.

"Prince Zuko, I brought clean linen strips. Were you washing your wound by yourself? Here, let me help you." Iroh noticed the tear on his nephew's cheek, but didn't say anything. "Prince Zuko, it's only been three days. You should get some rest. We won't arrive at the Western Air Temple until next week."

"I don't need rest, Uncle," Zuko said, frowning. "I need to be alert. I have to, at all times. I won't capture the Avatar if I'm not. And I won't get back my honor."

Zuko grabbed the clean bandages brought by Iroh and clumsily started wrapping them around his head. He wasn't used to do it yet. Iroh raised his hands to help.

"Leave me alone, Uncle," Zuko snapped. "I can do it myself."

Iroh lowered his head and did as he was told, leaving without a word. Prince Zuko always hated leaning on others for help anyway.

As soon as the door had closed, Zuko whispered, "Ren! Where did you go?"

The white-haired boy crawled out of under the bed. "I'm here. How is your eye?"

Zuko blinked a few times before answering, "Better."

Ren took the new bandages and wrapped them properly around Zuko's head, making sure that it wasn't too tight. His gentleness was nothing new, and Zuko couldn't help but sigh in relief. For the past three days, he had been struggling to repress himself from thinking about his friend, forbidding himself from missing him. But somehow, Ren was there now. Zuko was not alone anymore.

***

"Master Piandao! It's not fair! He keeps avoiding me instead of attacking! How am I gonna train my swordsmanship if our blades never touch!"

Zuko was twelve when he started going to Master Piandao's dojo to learn the way of the sword. It was his uncle's idea. The boy agreed only because it meant spending a few weeks far way from his bully of a sister.

His opponent was a boy the same age, his hair concealed by a black headscarf. "What's the point of being so great at sword fighting if you can't even touch your opponent?" he said to the prince.

"Watch your words, Ren. You're speaking to the prince of the Fire Nation," Master Piandao scolded him. He wanted to make them train together for quite a while now, but feared this would happen.

Piandao knew Ren's forte was his capacity to dodge anything at very high speed, but he had grown confident in the prince's progress for the past few days. He had hoped having the prince duel someone of the same age would help him gain confidence.

"I think it would be better if we continued training separately," Ren said, thoughts so full of irritation that his Master could see it floating above his head. There was effectively no other option left. Ren stood up, bowed down to both of them and left to go make the dinner.

"Prince Zuko, please forgive Ren. I'm afraid he's never had any friend his age."

"We're not friends," Zuko said, and then paused. He wanted to know why Ren was always alone, but couldn't bring himself to ask.

Piandao caught his questioning gaze. "Ren has been living here with me for a couple of years now. His only friends are the books in my library, and as I am his Master, not his training partner, you're technically his first opponent."

Zuko lit up. "So he is afraid of getting hurt because he doesn't know what to expect?"

Piandao smiled, shaking his head. "I think he is more afraid of hurting the prince of the Fire Nation by accident."

"As if!!!" Zuko roared. "I'm never letting him win!"

From the kitchen, Ren could hear their conversation. He kept a blank face, but the knife he was using hit louder and faster on the cutting board.

Zuko stayed at the dojo for five weeks, waking up with the sun, praying Agni even before bathing, and spent every morning practicing sword fighting. He was free during the afternoon, and spent most of it practicing firebending. By seven in the evening, he was already in bed.

Ren also woke up with the sun, but spent his mornings cleaning the library and the garden, while he trained in the afternoon and prepared dinner at night. His evenings were spent in Master Piandao's library, reading every book his eyes fell upon.

Zuko insisted everyday for another duel against Ren. Master Piandao already struggled to convince Ren the first time, he knew that there wouldn't be a second chance.

One day, while Zuko got up from his praying position, he caught Ren staring at him from the garden, a broom in his hands. Ren looked away as soon as their eyes met and bowed down before turning around. Now that he thought of it, Zuko had never seen Ren pray. He had caught glimpses of Master Piandao do it, but the boy with the black headscarf? Never.

Zuko knew some people didn't believe in Agni's reign. And he also knew that his grand-father had sent those types of people in the far away kingdoms of the Earth continent, serving as front line soldiers. The passing thought of Ren, the boy always obeying, always doing his best to follow every order Master Piandao ever gave; him being a non-believer seemed wrong on so many levels. And yet, the thought let Zuko wonder. Why?

"Why do you never pray?" Zuko asked one evening just as he came back inside after firebending practice.

Ren looked at him, confused and somewhat worried. The teapot he was carrying to do the library spurted a few drops of water on the ground.

"Do you not believe?" Zuko asked, tone carrying more accusations than he planned to. "Do you think Agni is not shining upon you?"

Ren looked really scared now, and he didn't answer.

"Why?" Zuko insisted. "We both wake up at the same time, yet I've never seen you pray." He took a step toward the boy. The lack of answer sparked anger in his heart. "You dare not to pray while I stay under the same roof! Only a non-believer would do such a thing in the presence of Agni's son!"

The teapot fell on the ground, splashing Ren's legs with hot tea. He whimpered at the pain, keeping eye contact with Zuko, petrified.

"Answer me!" Zuko growled.

After a silence that felt like an hour, Ren answered, almost whispering. "... Nobody ever taught me how."

Zuko was shocked. Somebody living under Agni's rays, standing on Fire Nation land, didn't know how to pray?! He had never seen anything like this before.

Master Piandao entered the room. "My teapot!" he cried out, looking at the ceramic scattered all over the wooden floor.

Zuko broke his gaze and went off to the garden. Ren bowed down, apologized for breaking the teapot and ran to fetch some rag to clean up the spilled tea. He was still shaking.

***

Suddenly, Zuko heard a loud twisting noise. It came from Ren's stomach.

"Sorry, I've only eaten dried berries for two days," Ren chuckled.

Zuko was horrified, and Ren laughed lightly when he saw the look on the prince's face. Once again, someone knocked on the door, making the prince wince.

"Prince Zuko, your dinner is ready," the soldier said through the door.

"Come back with one more serving, I'm starving!" Zuko shouted loudly. The soldier brought back so many dishes one could wonder if Zuko was really a banished prince, or the Fire Lord himself.

The two friends sat around the low table, facing each other. Zuko realized there was only one pair of chopsticks, so he gave the spoon to Ren. They would have to switch at some point. They started eating in a comforting silence. It felt natural, and let Zuko's thoughts wander freely.

"No comment on my new haircut?" he asked after a while.

Ren looked at him, but didn't answer right away.

Zuko had had to shave almost all of his hair, leaving only the ponytail on top of his head. It was the traditional hairstyle reserved for banished aristocrats, and it also helped getting the hair out of the wound.

... _am I ugly?_ Of course Zuko wouldn't ask that. He was banished, and had been sent on a quest to find the Avatar, that no one had seen for almost a century! There was no time to worry about looks!

"I don't think it’s ugly," Ren finally said, as if he could read the twirling thoughts in Zuko’s mind. He seemed like he wanted to say something else, but tightened his lips instead.

They fell back into silence for the rest of the meal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Thanks for giving this story a chance! I know a lot of people don't even click on fics with original characters, so it means the world that you've read my story that far already!  
> Comments give me life and the will to continue writing, so please let me know what you think! Even if it's a keyboard smash or a few emojis, I reply to every comment even now that this part of the story is complete ;)
> 
> Part 2 starts after Ozai's defeat for the sake of making tagging easier since a LOT of things happen when the characters are adults. It's still ongoing and I update frequently. I've learned to write with this story so hopefully you'll see that the writing improves as you read through the chapters. I sometimes come back and edit old chapters to make things more consistent but I don't want to erase my learning journey completely.
> 
> [Check my dedicated Twitter account to see all the art I've made for this fic!](https://twitter.com/impathespy) (mind the dicks though, it's nsfw)
> 
> You can guess it, this fic is very dear to me haha! I hope I'll be able to chat with you in the comments! Have a great read!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: toward the end of the chapter: not very descriptive violence, blood, choking

Night had fallen for quite some time already. Zuko was lying down on the bed, facing the ceiling. He tried to focus on his breathing, tried to make it more stable, more natural. It still felt like he had to think about it at all times, or he would simply forget to breathe. He sat up after a few moments.

"I can't let you sleep on the ground!" he said. "Come on, get in bed."

Ren sat back up. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. "... No, Prince Zuko... I can't-"

Zuko grabbed his hand and pulled him over the bed. "I'm the only one to know you're on this ship, and I can't take care of you if you get sick. Here, take that. I don't need them."

He gave Ren both the pillow and the blanket, and then lay back down, facing the wall, leaving just enough room for his friend to lie down.

At first, Ren didn't move for a minute or two. He inhaled slowly and said with a soft voice "Prince Zuko, take back the pillow. Your head is going to get cold."

The prince only slightly lifted his head up so that Ren could slide the pillow under it. He was already half-asleep. Ren sighed in relief, and lay down, facing away from the prince. He made sure their backs weren't touching. Zuko's warmth was radiating all around his body, and Ren fell into a deep sleep that felt like a nice cosy bath.

***

The next morning, Zuko went to Ren's room. He didn't bother knocking before entering. Ren had just finished wrapping his head in the black headscarf he always wore. He almost looked like he expected the prince's visit.

"Fine!" Zuko said, "If you weren't taught how to pray, then I'm going to be the one teaching you! Get out, out in the sun!"

He grabbed Ren by the sleeve and dragged him to the balcony. There, he removed half of his clothes, baring his chest. "Now your turn! Strip!"

Ren was horrified. "Do I have to?!"

Zuko didn't seem like he was joking. With a desperate look on his face, Ren slowly removed the top portion of his kimono, leaving it hanging over his belt. He crossed his arms over his chest, covering as much as he could. Zuko didn't give him a glance, he just turned toward the sun and inhaled.

"Now do as I do!" the prince ordered.

He moved into something that looked like a stretching pose. Ren was definitely confused, but did as he was told. They went over a few different poses, without saying anything. Zuko looked solemn, with his eyes closed. Heat could be seen radiating in waves from his body. Ren was imitating him as closely as possible, but no such effect appeared. Was it a firebender thing?

"Now put your head and your hands on the ground, and pray Agni," Zuko said as he kneeled down.

"What should I pray?" Ren asked.

"Do you not know anything?!" Zuko barked. "Ask for forgiveness, wish for something good, pray for the Fire Lord, you should already know all of this!"

So Ren did as he was told. Kneeling face down on the ground, his skin bare under Agni's rays, he asked for forgiveness.

_I'm sorry I wasn't able to pray properly until today. I swear I always believed. Please forgive me, Agni._

He wished for something good.

_I hope I can show Prince Zuko that I'm genuinely sorry. And that he stops intimidating me on purpose._

And he prayed for the Fire Lord.

_May the Fire Lord... may the Fire Lord...-_

He felt Zuko stand up, so he stood as well.

"Now you know how it's done!" the prince said. "And to make sure you're not an enemy of the Fire Nation, I'm going to make you pray every single morning from now on!"

And then, he finally saw Ren's smile, and he felt as if he was the first human to discover the sun.

***

Zuko knew there was no way he could tell anybody about Ren's presence on the ship. They both agreed to keep him hidden. Most of his days were spent in Zuko's room, while Zuko was on the deck, looking at the horizon, or in the captain's cabin, checking the different possible routes they could take if they found nothing at the Western Air Temple. The prince knew it wouldn't be that easy. If the Avatar managed to hide for 97 years already, it would probably take Zuko more than a few weeks to find him.

Ren was good at hiding. Incredibly so. He still avoided going out of the room during the day, but wandered freely at night. He loved climbing on the roof of the cabin. The night sky was gorgeous, in the middle of the ocean. No fire or any sort of light could be seen anywhere, and the stars shined so, so bright. When the moon was full, it was so white and gorgeous that he could see the entirety of the ship's deck like it was daylight. He often wished he had a book to read under the Milky Way. He didn't bring any book with him, and Zuko didn't have any either.

The Western Air Temple was a very strange piece of architecture. When they arrived on the island, Zuko took a few soldiers and his uncle to the place marked on his maps. But there was nothing. It was a flat field of grass with white fog simmering and twirling around in the cold wind. Ren followed them from quite a distance. When he got there, everybody had disappeared.

Worried, he took a few steps forward into the thick fog. As he put his foot down on the ground, he felt... nothing. There was no ground! He jumped back, scared to death.

He suddenly heard the prince shout. The voice came from under the cliff.

"I know Uncle! Of course nobody's there. Don't tell me what I already know! Let's go back to the ship. It was a waste of time!"

The Western Air Temple was built under a huge cliff, upside down. Fortunately, it wasn't the first time Iroh came there, so he knew the way. He also knew that the Western Air Temple was the first Air Temple Zuko's great-grandfather raided when he started the war. Only the stones remained, not even the corpses. Iroh felt relieved that he could push back the date his fifteen years-old nephew would see a real corpse for the first time. The prince was too young.

When they got back, Ren was sitting on the floor of Zuko's room, meditating. Zuko entered, fuming. He had shouted at the soldiers for half an hour, and still felt terrible. He sat down facing Ren, and joined his meditation. It wasn't really calming him, but there wasn't anything else he could do.

***

Zuko went every morning to Ren's room, tugging him outside by the square sleeve of his kimono. Ren quickly remembered the different poses, but it took a while before they felt natural. And being half-naked really didn't help. Somewhere in his mind, there was a tiny voice telling him that he wasn't allowed to pray, that Agni hated him anyway. He prayed harder, asked for forgiveness again and again. Zuko was quick to stand up, and often times Ren couldn't even reach the second part of the prayer, but he didn't dare stay down longer than the prince.

Zuko had also started childishly pestering him during the rest of the day. Right after the prince’s training sessions, Ren would start his own. Zuko would stay longer on the training grounds, watching Ren stretch and warm up, asking all sorts of questions. Ren would answer them depending on his mood. Most of the time, he stayed silent. He silently missed his quiet training sessions.

“Are you bald?" the prince asked one day.

Ren stopped in his tracks. “... No?"

“Can I see your hair then?" Zuko came closer, but Ren stepped back. “Come on, let me see!" he insisted.

As Zuko’s hand touched the black headscarf, Ren suddenly disappeared.

Zuko heard Ren's voice coming from behind his back. “Prince Zuko, I beg you," the boy said. "Please do not remove my headscarf. I cannot tell you the reason I wear it, but it’s for my safety."

Zuko turned around and frowned at him, confused. “Safety? What, would you die if you removed it?"

Ren stared at his feet, lips tight. He looked like he was on the verge of crying. He bowed down to Zuko before leaving the training grounds. He went to hide in the library. Unfortunately, Piandao was there, drinking mint tea and reading the newspaper.

“Did something happen?" he asked. "Shouldn’t you be practicing right now? Didn’t we agree on a solo training session today?" He looked genuinely worried.

“Master Piandao! I..." Ren couldn’t bring himself to tell what happened. He thought his master wouldn't be there at this time of the day. He had planned to burry himself in an anatomy dictionary or some kind of encyclopedia to forget about the incident. Piandao raised an eyebrow.

“... Could you..." Ren sighed.

“Could I what, Ren? Please speak clearly,“ he said, gently. Ren was visibly struggling with his emotions, and Piandao had never seen him like this before.

“Could you ask the prince not to touch me?" Ren said after a while.

"What?!" Piandao sat up. "What happened?"

Ren didn't say anything. He kept staring at his feet. Piandao rubbed his forehead and sighed. The prince had crossed _that_ line. He knew that he couldn't do anything for the boys to get along now.

It was Zuko's last day at the master's dojo. The next morning, he left for the capital city.

***

The following year, Piandao brought Ren to the Fire festival in the nearest town. Ren had been in a gloomy mood for the past few days. The next day, the prince would come back to train for several weeks. An entire year had passed, but Ren still couldn't forgive him. Piandao hoped the festival would lighten up his mood.

Although it was a small town, the festival was flamboyant. Artists and acrobats came from far away lands to perform in front of the crowd. Dozens and dozens of food stands were scattered across the streets, the vendors shouting louder than their neighbors, trying to get the passerby's attention.

Master Piandao bought takoyaki for Ren, and they went to the main stage, where a play was starting. It was the retelling of the events of Sozin's Comet, 95 years ago. When the comet passed through the sky, Fire Lord Sozin and his army of firebenders launched the Great War, to extend the greatness of the Fire Nation over the other nations. The Air Nomads were annihilated first. Everybody clapped and cheered as each of the Air Nomads characters fell onto the ground, fainting death.

It was a story every single person living on this land already knew. Ren turned around, wanting to see the faces of the spectators. It had been a long time since he last was in a crowd.

He was suddenly grabbed by the elbow. "You!!!" A huge hand pulled him through the crowd into an alleyway, until they were far enough that nobody could see or hear them. The man who the huge hand belonged to hit him in the face, making him see stars.

"I'm going to make you regret running away!" the man growled.

Ren didn't know what to do. The man was squeezing his arm so hard he couldn't feel his hand anymore. He got pushed back, his breath knocked away.

"You think you can disappear that easily? As if covering your hair was enough! You should've covered your nasty face too, but it’s too late now!" the man slurred.

Ren closed his eyes, thinking of his prayers to Agni, saying that he was sorry, again and again and again. The grip of the man suddenly loosened. Ren opened his eyes.

The man hurled "Who threw that rock at me?!"

A boy wearing a blue demon mask quickly grabbed Ren's hand, trying to help him. They ran forward, but Ren's head was still spinning. The man caught up with them. He grabbed Ren's headscarf and pulled him up from the ground. The masked boy tugged on Ren's arm. The black headscarf gave out, and let Ren's hair loose. Long strands of white hair flowed down. The masked boy pulled Ren forward and ran as fast as he could. They distanced the man, and hid under the mask vendor stall.

The blue demon removed his mask, revealing the face of the young prince of the Fire Nation.

"Prince Zuko?!" Ren whispered, surprised but also relieved at the familiar face.

"Yes it's me," the prince said, out of breath. "I saw that man grab you in the crowd. Who is he?"

"... It's a long story," Ren sighed, trying to calm his racing heart, "but he can't catch me again! What should we do? We can't stay hidden here forever."

Zuko was rubbing his chin, thinking.

"Stay here!" he said and he went away.

Ren was listening, trying to hear if the big man's footsteps were close. But it was a lost cause, there were too many people and too much noise around.

"Here, put a mask on!" Zuko was already back, with a red demon mask that looked similar to his blue one. He also removed his scarf.

"Wrap that around your head!" he said, reaching toward Ren.

Ren nodded and obliged. The two little demons sprang out of under the mask stall, but the vendor noticed them.

"Thieves! Come back!" he shouted.

Neither Ren nor Zuko knew the town, so they ran around the crowd, hoping that they could hide somewhere or find Master Piandao or Lord Iroh. But Agni had decided otherwise.

They ran into a sinister one-way street. They stopped, looked at each other and then behind them, fearing for their lives. The huge shadow of a big man hid the lights of the festival.

"Not only a runaway, but a thief too!" he barked.

He grabbed the red demon by the neck, strangling him. He lifted him as if it was a bag of feathers, and very slowly turned around without paying attention to the other masked kid. The red demon in his hand tried to squirm out, tugging at his huge fingers, his legs dangling in the air. The man's hand was like a metal clamp, there was no hope getting out of it. The red demon started having trouble to breathe.

All of a sudden, the hand loosened. The man stumbled and fell back, knocking his head hard on the stone wall. His neck snapped, bending in a very strange shape. Blood poured out of the top of his head.

The blue demon ran to check on his friend. He lifted his mask.

"I threw a brick at him," he said without any emotion in his voice. "Are you okay?"

The red demon was coughing hard. "Is he dead?" he asked with a raspy voice as he lifted his own mask. "Ren, is he dead?"

The man's body was lying face up, his mouth open, his brow covered in blood. He wasn't breathing. Zuko poked at him with his foot. Nothing happened.

The prince looked at Ren.

"Well, I guess now we're partners in crime."

Ren had already put the mask back on his face.


	3. Chapter 3

"We’re going to stay at this dock for a day. I’ll go get a pair of chopsticks and a spoon for you. Do you need anything else?"

The prince had just come back from morning prayer. Ren was still lying on the ground face down. Even if he couldn’t be under Agni’s rays, Ren still diligently prayed every morning. He sat up slowly, hesitant.

"... Could you..." he stopped mid-sentence.

Zuko lifted his remaining eyebrow, patiently waiting.

Ren inhaled. Was he really allowed to ask for this? He wasn't sure. But the prince could always tell him no, right? So he asked "Could you get a book for me? Any book is fine."

***

"Aah! Prince Zuko, Lord Iroh, welcome!"

Master Piandao didn’t expect them to be so early the next morning, but welcomed them warmly nonetheless. Ren was standing by his side, looking at Zuko. There was worry on his face, buried under a lot of awkwardness. Zuko smiled shyly and looked away.

He was staying for two months this time around. Ren had switched weapons to practice with two sabers, and when Zuko saw that, he asked Master Piandao to do the same as well. Surprisingly, Ren didn't object against practicing with Zuko. He still asked his master not to make them fight each other, but practicing on the same time slot didn't seem to bother him anymore.

While they were stretching one afternoon, Zuko started chatting. "Hey remember last time I was there? I was always asking you questions. You never asked anything back!"

"Should I have?" Ren replied, quite confused.

"Yes! Go on, ask me something!"

Ask a question? Ren took a long time to come up with one. "Do you have any pet?"

Zuko smiled. "I do! I have turtleducks! They live in a pond in the palace's garden!"

Ren was visibly intrigued by the turtleducks. He only had seen turtleducks in illustrated books, not once in real life.

Zuko described them, gesturing in the air. "They're this small when they're babies, and they grow up to around this size!"

The two boys chatted away like this until dinner time.

***

"'The Lan Zhan Company's Tea Catalog' and... 'A Complete Guide to Sewing and... Embroidery'?" Ren looked at the books, very confused, but not ungrateful.

Zuko blushed really hard. "That's the only things I could find! You said anything was fine!" He sat down on his meditation mat, lighting the candle in front of him with a flick of the hand. Even the tip of his ear was red.

Ren giggled. "Thank you, Prince Zuko," he said softly, and then sat on the other side of the candle, eyes closed, starting meditation as well. Zuko's blush was almost purple at this point.

***

Zuko asked questions all day long, everyday. At some point, it felt like he was just doing it because he wanted to hear Ren talk. But he never repeated a question once.

"My turn! What is your favorite place?" he asked.

"Master Piandao's library!" Ren answered way faster than usual.

Zuko frowned. "But I've never seen you there?"

Ren spent all of his evenings reading in the library. It was quite an impressive collection of books, and although Ren had been living there for three years already, he hadn't even read a tenth of what the library had to offer.

Zuko went to bed right after dinner everyday, so he had no idea what the library even looked like at night.

Curious, he followed Ren to the library that evening. He quickly regretted it.

Zuko had asked for Ren’s favorite book, and Ren gave him an anatomy dictionary, while he picked a history book for himself. It was the perfect illustration of the word 'boring'.

"Why do you like books so much?" Zuko complained, slouching over the low table. "It’s just a bunch of paper with ink on it. Nothing to rave about!"

"I'll show you."

Ren stood up, went to grab a very thick book, and sat down next to the prince. It was an illustrated encyclopedia. There were many bookmarks, and Ren quickly found the page he was looking for.

"There! You said you have turtleducks at home, right?" he said as he pointed at a picture on the page.

"This looks more like a ratmole!" the prince exclaimed. "They don't look like that at all!"

"They don't?" Ren opened his eyes wide.

"Yeah they're way cuter. Here, let me show you." Zuko soon came back with paper and ink and drew a turtle with a very long neck and a pointy beak.

"Where are the eyes?"

"Oops I forgot."

Ren laughed out loud. He covered his mouth instantly with his hands. Zuko grinned, side eyeing him.

"Wanna draw them yourself?"

"No I-" Zuko put the brush in Ren’s hand and guided it, putting down two splotches of ink on the poor animal's head.

Ren wasn't impressed.

"Now it looks more like a pandabear with a shell," he said. He put the brush back in Zuko's hand, and guided it to draw a weird palm tree shape on top of the shell. "It has wings! It can fly now!"

"Turtleducks can't fly!" Zuko exclaimed, pointing at Ren's face with the brush.

The brush touched the tip of Ren's nose. He reached to push Zuko's arm away, but instead put his hand right in the ink. The two boys bickered and gesticulated until both of their faces were covered in black brushstrokes, and Zuko knocked down the ink with his elbow.

Reacting in an instant, Ren lifted the book off the table before it was covered in ink. He left a black hand imprint on the back cover.

"Ahem."

They both froze.

Master Piandao was standing behind them. He suppressed a laugh when he saw the mustache Ren had drawn on the prince's face.

***

It was the night of a full moon. Ren brought the books to the cabin roof. It really was bright enough to read! He lay on his belly, both hands supporting his head, and started reading the tea catalog. He wouldn't say it was fascinating, but at least it was something to read! It had been more than three weeks since he had seen a book for the last time. He missed his master's library dearly.

A strand of his hair slipped down on the pages. It felt nice, finally living with his hair out. He usually arranged it in a low braid that he let hang inside his clothes or over his shoulder. Silvery white hair framed his face, almost getting into his eyes. He'd have to cut it shorter soon.

Zuko had already gone to sleep. Like every firebender, he was naturally an early riser, but he also was rarely able to stay awake for more than an hour or two after the sun had set. Ren, like every Fire Nation citizen, rose with the sun, but liked to fall back asleep after prayer. He would wake up a second time when Zuko would come back to bathe after firebending practice.

Sharing a room meant some awkward moments had to happen. If they were from another nation, Ren would have had to go out of the room and manage to hide until Zuko finished bathing. But they were from the Fire Nation, a nation built on a volcanic archipelago, where every single mountain spurted many natural hot springs. The Fire Nation people were very proud of their bathing culture, and although men and women bathed separately nowadays, everybody knew there was nothing to be ashamed of.

Zuko had noticed Ren didn't like being seen naked, so he would usually wash his body and bathe alone for a few minutes, and then warm up the bathtub again for his friend before leaving the room. Ren had never been able to take really hot baths in his entire life, and thanked Agni everyday for Zuko's kindness. It was truly a divine experience.

The wound on Zuko's face was healing not so badly. The scar would definitely stay for the rest of his life, but it hadn't gotten infected, thanks to Ren's care. His eye had completely recovered. He wasn't able to open it as widely, but at least he could see. Firebending practice had been rough for the past couple of weeks with only one seeing eye. Zuko was glad he could finally remove the bandages for good, even though it meant wearing the huge scar on his face for everyone to see. It was a constant reminder that he had lost his honor.

Ren had been staring at the same page for almost an hour, and it was getting quite cold on the rooftop. He went back to the prince's room, and found him sweating heavily. He looked like he was having a nightmare. The prince babbled a few words, sounding distressed.

"Father... Please, I didn't mean to! Please! Not the other eye!"

Zuko woke up, inhaling sharply. Ren was sleeping next to him, arms wrapped around the prince.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: smut, from when they get to their room until the end of the chapter. Again, Zuko is two years older than in canon, so they're both fifteen here.

Another month had passed. Zuko was still looking for the Avatar, and there was absolutely no sign of him anywhere. The prince's temper was getting quite bad. He wasn't making any progress during his firebending sessions with his uncle either. His nightmares were getting more frequent, and he often would struggle to fall asleep.

Giving up one night, he got out of bed and put his outer clothing back on, wondering where Ren had gone. He went to the ship deck, looking at the horizon. There was nobody around, and the soldier on night watch was sound asleep inside the cabin. Zuko sighed. All of a sudden, he heard a bird whistle coming from above. How could there be a bird here? They were in the middle of the ocean! He turned around and looked up. Ren was waving at him from the rooftop, smiling. He reached out to the prince, helping him climb up.

"What are you doing here?"

"That's my secret place. Nobody ever looks up!"

They were both whispering. Zuko noticed the _Complete Guide to Sewing and Embroidery_ in Ren's hand. "You're really reading that?"

"Yeah, it's surprisingly interesting! Do you have anything to mend? I'd like to try this technique!" Ren pointed at something on the page, beaming.

_Agni, he's so cute._

Hearing no answer, Ren looked back at Zuko, whose face was getting very, very close. Time slowed down for a bit. But Ren pulled back at the last second.

"Right! Now that you're here, I can finally show you!" he said, eyes twinkling.

He lay on his back and patted next to him, inviting Zuko to do the same.

"What do you mean, show me?" Zuko lay flat by his side.

"This!"

The prince finally looked up. The two teens were surrounded by an ocean of stars, shining so brightly it reminded Zuko of the lovely sequin dress his mom used to wear for big events. The Milky Way was illuminating the dark sky, like a shiny bridge crossing to the Heavens. Zuko had never really paid any attention to the night sky, and knew nothing of its beauty. He was mesmerized, lips parted in a smile, eyes sparkling. He felt a cold hand slide into his own, intertwining their fingers, and his smile widened even more. He turned his face to the side.

Under the starlight, Ren's beautiful hair made him look like he came down from the Moon itself. Piercing eyes of steel sparkled when they met Zuko's gaze, changing into lovely crescent moon shapes, full of secrets and untold stories that were begging to be shared.

The two teenagers looked at each other for a while, their faces so very close. Zuko felt his heart hammering in his chest. He was looking for a sign, a shift, a twitch of a finger, anything that could fill him with enough bravery to take the first step toward something he was still afraid of admitting he wanted.

_Please do something!_

Not able to stand the tension any longer, he sat up, but Ren immediately grabbed his elbow and pulled him into a kiss. It was soft and gentle _and definitely didn't last long enough_.

The prince put his hand behind Ren's neck and kissed him again, thoroughly this time. His heart was thumping so hard he could almost hear it. Ren's lips were soft, his hands were soft, his hair was soft, the breathy noises he was making were soft. Zuko's heart was _melting_. He pulled back, and Ren let out the tiniest whine before he closed his mouth.

"How can you be so cute?" Zuko blurted, his forehead resting against Ren's.

Ren blushed, his lips glistening. He blinked several times, not sure of where to look. Thoughts were spilling out of Zuko's mouth, like a broken dam. He should have been embarrassed, but it was Ren he was talking to. And they had just kissed. Ren wanted to kiss him. There was no point in hiding anymore.

Zuko closed his eyes and hugged him tightly. "I'm so, so glad you're here," he said, the tiniest crack in his voice betraying his emotions.

Ren returned his embrace, resting his forehead against Zuko's shoulder. They stayed like that for a while, bathing in the sea of stars. The intimacy should have felt new, maybe a bit awkward, maybe it should have made them a little self-conscious. But it didn't. It felt like the most natural thing in the world, like it was the most logical step they could take together. They both realized how long they had been waiting to do this, and that there had actually been no reason to wait at all.

Ren put tiny pecks all over Zuko's neck, making him giggle. He nibbled at his unscarred ear, and his hands reached for Zuko's head, but they froze mid-air. Zuko put his own hands over them, showing Ren he was allowed to touch his bare scalp. Ren could feel the stubble of his hair growing back. Every morning, Zuko had to carefully shave his head smooth again. The truth was that even if he let his hair grow back, nobody would have said anything. The soldiers had enough of the prince already, they didn't want to even think about him during the few times they were out of the ship, so they wouldn’t tell anyone. And of course Lord Iroh would never gossip about his dear nephew. But this hairstyle was part of an old tradition, and Zuko took pride in following it.

Ren's fingers felt incredible on his scalp. During the few times he spent alone, Zuko had discovered running his fingers over his own head actually felt really good, but it was completely different now that Ren, _Ren_ , was doing it. Zuko was almost purring.

The wind was rising, and Ren suddenly shivered sharply.

The prince let go of the embrace. "It's getting cold. We should go back inside," he said.

They slid down the cabin wall as discreetly as possible. The soldier on night watch was still sound asleep. He was going to hear about it the next day, for sure.

The two boys went to their room, Zuko closing the door behind them without caring about the noise. He then jumped on Ren for another kiss. The other boy laughed gently as he accepted the not-so-delicate bear hug. Step by step, they stumbled back kissing and giggling until they reached the bed and sat on it.

They looked at each other, with so many questions on their lips and neither of them brave enough to ask.

_Are we going to...?_

Teenagers of the Fire Nation all knew what was the next step after kissing someone, and even if he wasn’t the typical teenager, Ren knew about it as well. But it didn’t mean he knew how to engage in it, nor Zuko.

Ren didn't know where to look, so he let his eyes wander aimlessly across the room, and then back on Zuko, who was looking straight at him with eyes full of something new. Ren blushed really hard when he found the word to describe Zuko’s gaze: _lust_. Without thinking, he glanced down and got a glimpse of Zuko's tighter-than-usual pants. Ren's face turned bright pink. Truth was, his own pants were getting very uncomfortable too, but it wasn't as noticeable since he was, as always, wearing black.

Zuko's face was as red as his tunic, lips pinched, but eyes hopeful. He took Ren's hand in his own asking ‘ _is that okay?’_ silently. Ren nodded shyly. Zuko moved toward him, looking up and down, biting his lip. Ren pulled him forward gently, lying down under him. Time slowed down when their bodies finally pressed against each other.

Was it a dream? Was Ren going to wake up in the middle of the night, his pants soaking wet, like it would so often happen?

No. It felt so different.

Ren had his hands all over Zuko, caressing his arms, his shoulders, his back. His hands got shy once he reached Zuko's sash. The prince pulled back from the kiss and _smirked_. He sat up and removed his tunic. Ren had seen his bare chest so often he should have been used to it, but this time it was different. This time, he was allowed to look, he was allowed to swallow the entirety of Zuko's skin in an intense gaze. And Zuko loved it.

The prince glanced at Ren's torso, raising his eyebrow. Ren nodded again, and started lifting his own tunic. It might have looked like he was reluctant to strip, but the truth was very different. It wasn't that Ren was ashamed of his body, he just hated being stared at and, with his skin so blindingly light, it was usually what would happen at the public bathhouse. He had bad memories of grannies touching his back or his arms without prior notice.

But being stared at by Zuko, and finally feeling Zuko's skin on his own felt incredible. It felt safe. It felt _right_! Zuko's lips, Zuko's hands, Zuko's legs were all over him and he loved every second of it. His hands got braver and slid down to the prince's stomach, drawing around his abs, ever so slowly moving down until he reached the front of the belt.

Zuko breathed fire when he tugged at it, opening it indelicately. Ren pushed him on the side, needing more room to unfasten his own belt. Right as he removed it, Zuko's hands went down his pants.

_Oh Agni..._

The prince buried his face in his neck, sucking at his skin. His hands and his mouth were so warm, it felt so good!

Ren sat up and reached down to remove Zuko's pants. His own pants were thrown across the room in an instant. He lay on top of Zuko, their entirely bare skin touching, hands moving, caressing the other's body as if it was the most precious treasure in the world. Finally discovering the other’s body was absolutely thrilling. Zuko took Ren's length in his hand, slowly rubbing it up and down. Ren's hips started moving by themselves, making him rub against Zuko's arousal. The prince inhaled sharply, and took both their cocks together. His hands were burning hot, and Ren moaned softly, and it was very embarrassing but he really couldn’t help it. He didn't know what to do with his hand, so he let it move on its own to Zuko's nipple. The prince whimpered, purring Ren's name.

_Oh, he’s sensitive here?_

Ren's long hair was all around Zuko, caressing his shoulders and his arms, hiding him like a divine wedding veil. It felt as soft as feathers. Zuko extended his arm and grabbed Ren by the back of the neck, pulling him into a passionate kiss.

Precum was soon leaking out of Ren's cock, or maybe it was Zuko's. At this point they felt like one entirely connected body. Ren had put his hand over Zuko's, making him pump faster. They were kissing and moaning and making a mess, and enjoying every minute of it. Ren came first, spilling over Zuko's stomach, and Zuko followed a few strokes later. They took a minute to catch their breath, Ren kissing Zuko's neck softly.

After a few moments, the prince got up and washed himself at the sink. Ren sat on the bed, wrapped in a blanket, suddenly self-conscious. He pinched his cheek hard.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked, smiling at him with his eyebrow raised.

"Nothing. Just checking if I'm not dreaming."

Zuko laughed. "No, it's not one of your dirty dreams again! You got the real deal!"

Ren froze. His entire body turned crimson red.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: the entire chapter is smut.

For the first time in ages, Zuko slept incredibly well, wrapped in Ren’s arms. He woke up to kisses on his neck and fingers running down his tummy.

"Where do you think you’re going?" Zuko turned around and straddled his boyfriend. _His boyfriend_. They were both as naked as the night before.

Ren chuckled, his eyes still full of sleep. He kissed the back of Zuko’s hand.

Zuko leaned in for a kiss on the lips. "Come on, sleepyhead, time for prayer!" he said and got up.

Ren sat, stretched, and didn’t even bother putting on clothes before starting the sun salute. Zuko instantly regretted having to go outside. But what was the point in getting dressed, right? What Ren was doing made perfect sense, there was no window in Zuko's room. The prince inhaled sharply and forced himself to look away, putting on his clothes.

He came back three hours later when his daily firebending practice was over, shouting “Do not bother me under any circumstance! I’m taking the day off!" before locking the door. He then turned around and _winked_. As usual, Ren had gone back to bed. He giggled, his eyelids so heavy they were almost closed.

Zuko went to the sink and shaved his head shiny smooth. He stripped and washed his entire body with soap, scrubbing hard. When he reached for his back, he felt a damp cloth rubbing against his skin.

"Let me help," Ren said.

He kissed the back of the prince's shoulder. Once Zuko was completely scrubbed off of any dirt, they switched positions. Ren's hair was so long it almost reached his butt. The braid had come off during the night, and his hair was completely tangled. Zuko took a comb and started working bottom to top while Ren was washing himself.

Once he reached the top of his head, Zuko had to stand up. Ren turned around and faced him, looking up. Zuko cupped his cheek with his hand.

_Agni, he's so gorgeous._

Zuko found a concerning air of mischief in his boyfriend’s eyes. Ren made sure he noticed, then glanced at his dick and grabbed his butt, bringing him forward. He licked Zuko's soft length from bottom to top while looking at him right in the eyes.

"What are you doing?!" Zuko yelped. The comb fell down in a loud _clang_.

Zuko had turned bright pink. His dick was getting really hard really fast. Ren grabbed his butt cheeks with both hands and massaged them as he was licking his balls, his nose buried in the prince's pubic hair. Zuko covered his face with his hands, not able to look anymore. But he still peeked between his fingers as Ren slowly slid his half-hard dick between his lips. Zuko covered his mouth right as he let out a moan that was way louder than expected.

Ren pulled out. "Don't cover your mouth, I wanna hear you."

"The entire ship is gonna hear me too!" Zuko realized how turned on he was by what he had just said was, and blushed even more.

"No, this room is soundproof, I checked," Ren ensured.

He looked so confident, Zuko lowered his hands, putting all his trust in his lover's words. He didn't know where to put his hands, so Ren brought them to his head. Zuko's hands plunged in the feathery white hair, playing with it, twirling it around his fingers. Ren hummed in contentment. He had taken Zuko's length back into his mouth, slowly bobbing back and forth, twisting his tongue against the shaft. Zuko was almost sobbing. It felt incredible! Ren massaged his ass with one hand, his balls with the other, and slowly but surely Zuko became completely undone, moaning Ren's name again and again. It felt so good his knees started to wobble.

"Ren! Ahh! Ren... Pull out! I'm coming!"

Ren squeezed his butt cheeks hard, not pulling out at all. Zuko came inside his mouth in a muffled purr, biting his hand.

"Ah, I'm so sorry I—" Zuko immediately stopped apologizing once he saw the hunger with which Ren licked his lips.

_Oh Agni, what did I do._

Ren tied his hair in a topknot and stepped into the bathtub. Zuko followed. It was a bit small for two people, but both of them seemed to agree that it made it even better. Ren put his arms around his knees, his legs between Zuko's. He rested his head on his forearm, dozing off a little, still sleepy.

"So you decided to take the day off? Is there a reason?" he asked the prince, voice a little coarser than usual.

Of course _he_ was the reason! Zuko had pictured the perfect pick-up line for this, but got shy once it was time to say it. Instead, he sank lower into the water, blowing bubbles with his mouth.

Ren smiled. "You're cute."

Zuko blushed. "You're the cute one."

Ren extended his arm, cupping his boyfriend's head, feeling the smooth scalp. Zuko leaned into his hand.

"...Would you like to try..." Ren said, but stopped in his tracks. Zuko raised an eyebrow, waiting. "...You know..." Ren made shapes in the air.

"I really don't know what you mean," Zuko said, sitting up again.

It was Ren's turn to blow bubbles in the water to hide his blush. Zuko wasn’t helping him at all! He straightened his back and inhaled sharply.

"Would you like to try to do the entire thing with me? You know, putting _it_ inside?"

"Inside what?" Zuko said, genuinely lost. He had a vague idea of what ' _it_ ' was supposed to be, but the extent of his knowledge stopped there.

Ren turned crimson red. "In-in-inside the b-b-butt..."

"You can do that?" Zuko was confused and sort of repulsed at the idea, but curiosity had the upper hand. "Why would you do that?"

"... I heard it feels really good... for both parties involved," Ren said with a blush reaching his ears. He wanted to disappear so bad.

Zuko blinked a few times, his mouth turned into an _o_ -shape. "But how does _it_ fit? Isn't this, uhm, place... too small?"

"If... if you use oil, uhm, _it_ can slide right in. Or so I heard."

"Where did you _hear_ this?"

Ren didn't know whether he wanted to hide or cry. "I found a health education book in Master Piandao’s library..." he admitted after inhaling sharply.

Zuko paused, looked at Ren dead in the eyes and then bursted out loud, laughing. Ren's eyebrows rose to the ceiling.

The prince stood up, pulled his boyfriend out of the bath and dried them both with a towel. He grabbed a bottle of ointment in the cabinet and then went to straddle Ren onto the bed.

"How is this gonna work? Should I ride you? Are you sure it's gonna fit? I've only got ointment for burns, but it's basically scented oil. It should work, right?" Zuko was chatting as if he was talking about the weather.

“You’re not scared?"

“Why would I be? I survived hearing your dirty dreams for so long already, now that I’m finally getting the real deal, I’m not gonna back off!" Zuko smiled smugly.

If Ren's head could explode from too much blushing, it would have done so already.

"How did you... know about them?" he asked with a small voice.

"You're super talkative when you sleep!" Zuko exclaimed. "Like, you can literally hold conversations!"

Ren froze in complete shock. Before he could say anything, tears started pouring down his cheeks.

"Wha-what's happening?!" Zuko tried to wipe Ren's cheeks with his thumbs, but tears kept coming.

Ren sobbed. "Did I... did I say anything... about my parents?"

Zuko paused, trying to remember it all, having a sense that he had to show Ren’s trust in his words was justified.

"No. You definitely didn't talk about them. In fact, I think you only talk when you're having wet dreams," he said in a very serious tone. He wanted to make sure Ren knew he wasn't joking around.

Ren wiped his face with his palms and laughed softly. "How embarrassing..."

He buried his face into Zuko’s chest and hugged him tightly. They stayed in each other's embrace for a while.

“... So you pretended to be asleep when I got up to change underwear?" Ren finally asked with a breathy voice after a few moments.

He looked up at Zuko, with a gaze the prince had never seen before.

“Tell me, Prince Zuko, how did it feel like, hearing me come in my sleep?"

His voice had dropped one octave lower.

"Did it make you hard?"

He ran his hands up Zuko's torso.

"Did you touch yourself?"

He cupped Zuko's face.

"Did you get off right next to me?"

He whispered at Zuko, his lips brushing against the prince’s.

Zuko felt like he had awoken Ren’s true form, a beast ready to swallow him whole. It felt both very dangerous and very arousing.

Ren grabbed the bottle Zuko had brought. He sleeked his hands and both of their cocks with oil. It smelled like cedar tree, and left off a shiny gloss. Ren had no idea what he was doing, but he pretended like it wasn't the case.

He put one fingertip against Zuko's entrance, looking up for approval. Zuko shoved his tongue in his mouth.

_That should be enough of an approval._

He pushed his finger inside, slowly. Zuko shivered.

"Tell me if it hurts," Ren said, breathing getting heavier.

"It doesn't."

Zuko inhaled sharply as Ren delicately pulled his finger almost out and then pushed back in gently. Zuko was relaxing, getting used to the new sensation. It felt foreign and weird, but also very exciting. He had closed his eyes, his hands clasping around Ren's shoulders, balancing himself.

The prince tried to think of what was coming next, and although he didn't yet get what this whole ordeal was about, the thought of Ren entering him with his... dick... was...

_Oh Agni why am I like this?_

Zuko internally laughed at himself for still being shy while he had a finger up his ass.

Ren was looking at him all over, visibly worried to hurt him. Zuko cupped his face and kissed him deeply, their tongues intertwining. Ren added a second finger.

 _Still doesn't hurt?_ he asked with his eyes.

Zuko shook his head slightly. He soon was pushing back against Ren's fingers, breathing heavily. Ren made his fingers bend in all directions and opened Zuko wider. He rubbed against something that made Zuko suddenly jerk and moan.

"It feels... Ah! It feels good!" The prince said after noticing the frown on his boyfriend’s face.

More confident, Ren went in with a third finger, twisting his wrist, going in and out just a little bit faster, opening up the prince just a little bit wider. His mind was running wild, scenarios of his past wet dreams scrolling down his brain at fast speed. None of them were as good as doing it for real, he had already decided. The warmth of Zuko's body above him, the breathy whimpers coming out of his mouth, the glistening sweat rolling down his hips were all new details Ren wanted to burn onto his memory forever.

When he felt Zuko was probably stretched enough, he removed his hand, and whispered into Zuko's ear, “Ride me."

Zuko's amber eyes sparkled in the soft candle glow. He pushed Ren's chest back, making him lie down. He lifted his leg and sat above Ren's hard cock, using his hand to align it with his hole. Shivers ran down his spine as he sank in. The oil was indeed helpful in the process, but Ren's shaft was thicker than three fingers and Zuko had to go slow. Ren's hands were running up and down his thighs, caressing his taut muscles. His fingers felt like feathers and their touch definitely helped Zuko relax. Ren's mouth was getting dry, watching his dick slowly being eaten by his prince's ass, inch by inch, until he saw it disappear behind Zuko's balls. It was _so hot_! ...Literally. Was it a firebender thing? Ren loved it.

Zuko’s hole had swallowed him in full. The prince’s breath was very short, his thighs twitching irregularly. Ren was concentrating very hard on not looking down too much, avoiding the delicious-looking cock that was presented to him, proud and red and standing, already leaking precum, balls resting, a little squished down, against his lower stomach. He couldn't help but think about how, a few minutes earlier, he had this beautiful cock in his mouth, and how, right this very instant, he wanted it back in again. Zuko smirked like he knew what was on Ren's mind, and pushed a thumb inside Ren's mouth, Ren eagerly sucking on it for a while, distracting Zuko of his discomfort.

After a minute or two, Zuko pulled himself up, and hummed as he got back down. It felt tight, but it felt good. Ren grabbed his hips to help him keep his balance. Back up... and back down. Ren let out a soft moan. Sweat was pearling on his forehead. Zuko knew he was restraining his voice, and it lit a competitive spark in his mind. Ren got the chance to hear him moan, but now he was holding his voice down? Zuko wasn't letting him keep it low. He went faster after making sure he wasn't hurting himself, feeling like if Ren had been just a tiny little bit larger it would have ripped him open, but it was just the perfect size. The rising sensations pulled Zuko's mind back to reality. It felt _really_ good. Zuko blushed once he noticed the sounds of oil and skin rubbing his motions were producing. For some reason, those wet sounds felt much more embarrassing than anything else.

"Agni!" he shouted, all of a sudden.

Ren had shifted under him, and hit just the right spot.

_Oh! So that's what this is all about!_

Ren tried his best to hit the same spot a second time, but it was difficult to maneuver under Zuko's weight. He pushed his hips in and out of the prince's ass, making him see stars, faster and faster.

Zuko picked up the same pace, meeting his thrusts. Ren hit that spot again, and precum spurted out of Zuko's dick. Ren took him in his hand, stroking fast. They were both completely breathless, sweaty and red.

"Ahh! Zuko!"

Ren came inside, shouting the prince's name, and Zuko spilled all over his stomach a few strokes later. They lay on top of each other, the prince's head on Ren's shoulder, the two boys trying to catch their breath while still being connected.

After basking in the afterglow for a little while, Ren suddenly realized what he had done. Not only had he come inside His Royal Butt Cheeks, but he had called Zuko by his _name only_. A wave of panic submerged him.

Zuko pulled himself out.

"Call me by my name more often, would you?" he said as he kissed Ren gently before getting up and cleaning himself.

Ren's heart throbbed so hard it threatened to jump out of his ribcage.


	6. Chapter 6

Waking up everyday wrapped in Ren's arms was a bliss. But every time he looked at the mirror, Zuko was reminded of why he was on this ship. He had to find the Avatar.

The prince and his crew spent several months scouring the sea, checking every single place the previous Avatars had lived in, asking around in towns. They still had zero information, not even a rumor, nothing. The Avatar couldn't be dead already, and even if he was, there would have been another Avatar by now and they would have been from the Water Tribe. Or maybe they would have already passed away and there would be another Avatar from the Earth Kingdom. It seemed like the Avatar cycle had stopped, but the only way to be sure was to find him. He was the Avatar, but he was still a human, and his body had to be somewhere!

Ren had managed to stay hidden on the ship for six months already. Zuko brought back books every time they visited a new town. On stormy days, Ren would dare step out of the ship on his own, quickly disappearing into the mist. On a particularly gloomy day, he went to a small shop in a colonial town in the south of the Earth continent. Looking up and down at the hooded person on her doorstep, the shop owner began to sweat heavily. She was of the Earth Kingdom people. Ren stayed near the door, his boots completely drenched and muddy. He fetched something in his coat.

"Excuse me, ma'am, I don't want to get your floor dirty. How much for a sewing kit?"

He removed his hood and stretched his arm out, a small money pouch in his hand. The lady almost fainted.

"I thought you were one of those Fire Nation soldiers! Come in, come in, don't worry about your boots."

Ren and the lady chatted for a while. She was wondering why a young traveller would be interested in sewing. It wasn't something you came across everyday! He told her he had been gifted a sewing book, and wanted to practice. She offered some tea. Time flew by, and the sun was soon setting.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but I have to leave soon! I didn't realize it was so late already!"

"It was my pleasure! Please come back one day, young child, I'll teach you lace making!"

She waved at him.

Ren came back to the ship, panting. Fortunately, all of the crew was busy setting up for departure, and no one noticed him.

Zuko was walking back and forth in his room, waiting impatiently.

"Where were you?! I almost had to leave you there!" he barked as soon as the door was closed.

"Sorry!" Ren sheepishly said back.

He carried a huge bean bag in his arms, like one would carry a baby. He was soaking wet, the water had sipped through the hood, sticking his hair to his face. Rain had been pouring for an hour outside.

"What is this?" Zuko asked, frowning.

Ren kneeled down and put the package on the ground. Threads, pins, needles, scissors, embroidery hoops and a vast quantity of fabric spilled onto the floor.

"I met a very nice lady and she gave me all of this for free! Now I can try out all the things in the book you gave me!" Ren said with a radiant smile.

Zuko pressed a finger to his temple, rubbed his face, and... smiled back. How could he be angry?

_He really is my soft spot._

***

"My dear nephew, let's play a game of Pai Sho together!"

Uncle Iroh had brought the board and the tiles to Zuko's room. It was unusual for him to impose something like this. Ren hid behind the bathtub, and discreetly grabbed the nearest book when he realized Lord Iroh was here to stay. Zuko couldn't figure out why, but of all the people on the ship, Ren was the most scared of him. In the prince's opinion, his uncle was probably the least dangerous of them all, but Ren absolutely refused to meet him.

The prince and his uncle started playing.

Lord Iroh had taken the decision to follow his nephew in his journey by himself. He knew Fire Lord Ozai would rejoice at the idea of finally getting rid of him anyway. He had made sure that the prince was properly healing during the first months out in the sea. In theory, only Zuko was banished, but it was a good way to get rid of all of the people on the ship at the same time, so the prince and his uncle got stuck with the worst soldiers as their crew and none of the royal healers.

"I see you got a new hobby again! First, reading, and now, embroidery? It's great to see you try new things, Prince Zuko!"

Piles of books were lined against the wall, and a large embroidery hoop was left on the bed.

Zuko clenched his jaw, glancing at the bathtub.

"... Yes, Uncle. It helps me calm down," he said between his teeth.

There was absolutely no sound, but he could almost see the waves of Ren's giggles float in the air.

Iroh placed a new tile on the board. "I have come to you today bearing unfortunate news."

Zuko raised an eyebrow.

Iroh put another tile on the board. "I’m worried that there could be a wind of rebellion floating around this ship recently."

A mutiny? As if Zuko didn’t have enough problems already.

Iroh was playing Pai Sho in a tavern on the docks when he noticed two men talking at the back of the shop, their heads low. They exchanged a big pouch, probably full of money. When the man closest to the exit turn around, Iroh recognized him. He was the soldier who was in charge of buying their food supplies.

Zuko cut off his uncle, “No wonder why we ate the same dish for three days in a row!"

The idiot had spent all of their money! Zuko flipped up the Pai Sho board with anger, startling both Ren and his uncle. He stormed out of the room.

"Everyone on the ship deck, NOW!!!" he shouted so loud there was no doubt everybody on the ship had heard him.

Iroh took the time to collect all the tiles on the ground, sighing, before he went to the deck.

The fog was incredibly thick that day, one couldn't see further than five meters away. Ren went there too, listening from afar. From where he was hiding, he could only see vague human shapes, but since Zuko and Iroh were both shorter than the soldiers, they were easily distinguishable.

"One of you has stolen money that was meant for the entire crew. That person shall come forward, or I'll make sure you will all suffer from this action!"

The soldiers glanced at each other. Nobody moved. Zuko erupted in anger, throwing fire bolts in their direction. The soldiers dodged as best as they could.

"Prince Zuko..." one soldier dared, raising a hand in defeat.

Zuko turned around and stare at that soldier with piercing eyes. He recognized him as the man who would always fall asleep during night watch.

"You! Liar! I know who did it, and it's not you! Don't you dare lie to me again!"

The prince pushed him violently, and he fell down in the water. Another soldier quickly threw him a rope, but Zuko ignored him.

The prince grabbed another soldier. "You!!! I know you did it!"

The man waved his hands. "I'm sorry, Prince Zuko! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! It's not what you think!"

Zuko was blind with anger. "You were seen handing out a large amount of money to some guy at the tavern! EXPLAIN!"

"I... I... This man... He said he had heard of the Avatar! He said if I gave him my money, he would tell me!"

"So you gave him what was supposed to pay for this month's food?!"

"No! No I didn't! ... It was my own! I... I had planned to spend the evening at this tavern, getting wasted, it was the money for my beers!"

"How can you be so stupid! He was obviously a crook!"

"I-I-I don't know," the man stuttered, "but he gave me the information!"

Zuko came closer and stared at him gravely. "Then why didn't you run to me and tell me right away?"

If looks could kill, the man would already be dead by now. The soldier explained what the guy in the tavern told him.

The prince listened, sulking, and then looked at him dead in the eyes. "And why have we eaten the same thing for three days?! Where is the fresh food?"

"It's my fault, Prince Zuko." An older man stepped forward.

"I am the cook, but I was sick for the past few days, and I asked him if he could do it for me. He only knows how to make daikon radish soup! I'm sorry I couldn't teach him properly."

Zuko clenched his jaw. He articulated "Then. Why. Wasn't. I. Informed?"

He stormed off, passing in front of Ren without a glance. Ren followed him to his room like a puppy, worried. Zuko started shouting out his anger as soon as the door closed.

"Ughhh! They don't trust me! They think I'm an idiot! That I can't find the Avatar!"

At loss, Ren didn't say anything.

"You must think I'm a terrible person," Zuko asked with a raspy voice.

Ren looked at him in the eyes, but kept silent.

"Well at least now you know the true me!" Zuko had raised his voice again.

Ren looked away. "No, Zuko, the true you cares about those soldiers."

It lit something in Zuko's anger. "I cared for the lives of soldiers ONCE, and it cost me half of my FACE!!!"

Ren opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything. They both looked away. Ren didn't know what to do. The prince rubbed his face, sighing.

After a while, Ren spoke with the softest voice "... Is that why? Is that really why you got banished?" His eyes started watering.

Zuko hugged him tight. They spent a few minutes in each other's arms.

"... I'm sorry," Zuko finally said. "Don't worry too much about that. I'm okay."


	7. Chapter 7

Zuko told Ren the info he was given by the soldier. There was an Avatar statue at the top of the fountain in the middle of the town. It had recently gotten stolen. The shops around town used to sell smaller versions of this statue, but they had disappeared as well. The rumor was saying that the statue really looked like the Avatar, so maybe he had stolen all of them to hide his identity. Zuko had been scouring the world for half a year already, the word may have spread around that he was searching for him.

"So my plan is to go there tonight and check out all the places he talked about," Zuko announced.

"Are you going alone?" Ren asked, his brows knitting together.

"Yes, there's no way I can trust those soldiers. I'm gonna do it myself!"

"Let me go with you," Ren said, and went to grab something under the bed. He had brought the red and blue demon masks with him!

"I had a feeling this would be useful," he said as he gave the blue mask to Zuko and put the red on his head. "Come on, blue demon, let's go on a hunt!"

Zuko lit up.

They discreetly left the ship and went to the center of the town. It was the middle of the night, the streetlights had been lit but the streets were almost empty. Ren and the prince hid in an alleyway and examined the central square. As the soldier had said, the top of the fountain was obviously missing something.

A silhouette came to the square. They pulled out something from a bag and stretched their arm out, aligning the object with the fountain. From where they were hiding, Zuko and Ren could see what the person was holding.

_A doll?_

_What is going on?_

The silhouette put the doll back into the bag and walked in the direction of the alleyway. Ren pointed at the rooftop. He helped push Zuko up and then climbed too. They could clearly see the unknown silhouette now. It was an average middle-aged man. Was he the Avatar? No. He should be way older than this!

Zuko and Ren followed him, jumping from rooftop to rooftop in silence. They went quite far from the fountain, in the opposite direction to the dock. The man entered a shop that looked like it was his own, and sat at a table, examining the doll. He went in another room. Zuko started moving, getting closer, but the man soon came back. He was having tea, this late at night?!

"We have to catch this guy and interrogate him!" Zuko whispered.

"There must be another way to get in," Ren replied. "I'll go to the front of the store, you'll go to the back. We can corner him inside."

Zuko nodded. He sneaked along the walls of the shop, avoiding the lit path. At the back, there was a courtyard, with a shed twice as big as the storefront. The door wasn't completely closed. He opened it and lit a small flame in his hand. The first thing he saw was more than fifty tall naked women.

"What is THAT?!" Zuko blurted out loud. He was so glad he was wearing a mask, even if he was alone, because his face was rapidly heating up.

The women were all holding different poses, and none of them moved. In fact, none of them looked alive. Statues! Against the walls, there were dozens of shelves full of miniature versions of those statues, some of them wearing clothing, some of them nude but with their hair glued on, others left completely blank.

_A doll-maker!_

Zuko ran back to the courtyard. From there, he could hear the man's voice. Hiding against the wall, he sneaked in.

"Ho ho ho! So tell me more! What is a young lad like you doing outside at night? Here, have a sip."

Zuko slammed the paper doors open. Ren was sitting at the table, his mask up on his head, and the man was pouring him some tea. Ren was visibly uncomfortable, but smiled politely nonetheless.

"Oooh, there's a second one! You youngsters have a great taste in masks!"

Zuko was appalled. The man made him sit as well, and poured another cup of tea.

"So, tell me more about that Avatar thingy!" the man said.

"What do you mean, old man!!!" Zuko sprang back on his feet, barking. "You obviously know about that! You stole all of these Avatar dolls in the shops, and I saw where you store them! Why are you hiding them?"

Ren looked at Zuko, asking with his eyes what the hell he was talking about.

"Ho ho ho!" the man giggled. "You want to see my dolls? Come on, let's go!"

He brought them to the shed, and lit several paper lanterns with his candle. Ren was in awe. The statues had elaborate painting on their faces, red, black and white. They were extremely pretty. It looked like the different poses were telling a story.

"These statues are meant to tell the story of a lady named Kyoshi. I don't know much about that lady, but when I was young I spent a week in Kyoshi Island in the south, and I fell in love with the town statue. I asked around, trying to know who that lady was. Unfortunately, the townspeople were quite afraid of the Fire Nation, so I couldn't get much information. I had to use my own imagination! And now I make statues from the stories I've made up. The town mayor loves them! It also helps with business, tourists come to see the statue so we sell dolls that look similar. We change it up every few years. It's unfortunate that you came to this town when the fountain statue just got taken down! I haven't finished the new one yet. Please let me show you the miniatures I've made as well-"

He turned around, but the two boys had disappeared.

The town lights were starting to falter. Dusk was approaching. Out of breath, Ren and the prince halted on a rooftop near the main square. They sat down and removed their masks.

Ren laughed out loud. "I can't believe it! So that was the reason the statue and all the dolls in the shops got removed, huh?"

His laugh died when he glanced at Zuko's face.

"I'm an idiot," Zuko looked so mad at himself.

Ren took his hand in his own, rubbing his finger against the knuckles. The prince put his head on his shoulder, sighing in frustration.

Ren was smiling silently. Zuko asked him why he looked so happy.

"Doesn't this count as our first date?" Ren replied.

Zuko's heart melted.

"Hey Ren?"

"Mmh?"

"I love you."

The sun peaked through the mountains in the horizon. It was their first time kissing under Agni's rays.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: the whole chapter is smut; allusions to past sexual abuse; cheesiness lvl. 100 to compensate

Zuko had ordered for departure as soon as morning prayer had ended, and while the crew was busy, there was nothing important for him to do for the rest of the day. The plan was to get some rest, but even if he and Ren hadn't slept at all, the two boys were still full of energy.

"You took that?!" Zuko pulled a doll out from the clothes Ren had left on the floor.

" _Not only a runaway, but a thief too._ Remember?" Ren smirked, and kissed him.

Of course Zuko remembered. Those words came from the big man at the Fire festival, the man that almost choked him to death. To this day, he was still haunting Zuko's nightmares.

"Come on, take off your clothes!" Ren said, and pulled the prince's pants down, pushing him to lie on the bed.

He lay on top of him, kissing his forehead, his eyes, his cheeks, his nose and his lips. He continued to kiss him everywhere, going down until he reached his belly button.

He went back up and whispered in Zuko's ear, caressing the prince's lips with his fingers, "What would you like for your breakfast today, sir?"

Zuko clapped Ren's butt cheeks playfully. "I think I have an idea!" he said as he sat up. "What about switching for once? I mean, me being inside you. I'm sure you'll like it, it feels intense at first but it's really great!"

Ren looked at him, and then away. He opened his mouth to say something, but no word came out.

_There's something wrong._

Zuko tilted his head slightly, looking for an answer.

Ren inhaled and exhaled slowly. "I've had... bad experiences with that. That I'd like to forget about."

_Bad experiences?_

The words sank in. Ren was definitely talking about something really bad. Zuko panicked.

Ren felt like he had to explain. "You know the guy who chased me at the Fire festival?"

"Yeah I remember! Did he...? Did you get...?" Zuko couldn't bring himself to say those words.

"Yes, that's why I ran away. That's why I was hiding my hair. Because if he found me again he would have taken me back and done it again."

Zuko's mouth moved, but he couldn't say anything.

"Don't worry, it was a long time ago," Ren said, patting Zuko on the shoulder. "He's dead now. Really, don't worry about that. Sorry to have ruined the mood." His smile was meant to be reassuring.

_Ah yeah, we killed him, right?_

Ren tugged at Zuko's elbow, making him lie back down. He cupped his face and kissed him, but got no reaction. Zuko looked shocked.

"Hey, Zuko..." he whispered. "Really, I'm okay now."

Hearing his name, Zuko snapped back to reality. Even if he was completely allowed to use it, Ren very rarely did so. Zuko wrapped him in his arms, hugging him so hard he couldn't move anymore.

"Prince Zuko?"

Zuko's voice came out hoarse. "I'm so mad I couldn't be there to protect you."

"It's not your fault?! We didn't even know each other at the time!"

"I don't care, that's a person living on Fire Nation land, and it's my duty to make sure those horrible people don't roam around freely."

Ren's heart throbbed. "My prince..."

"I'll protect you."

They looked at each other.

Ren suddenly started giggling. "We sound so cheesy, it's like in that romantic novel you bought me."

"I bought you something like that?!"

"Yeah, the book with the pink cover, you bought it last month!"

Truth was, Zuko always went with what he could easily find without concern about the topic, since Ren read anything anyway.

Ren pouted. "Too bad it lacks in the sexy department though. It would have been fun reenacting those too."

Zuko felt the back of his head tingle. "Are you secretly into some weird shit I don't know about?"

Ren laughed and kissed him. "Mmh, I think I'm into hearing you swear."

"Anything else?" Zuko raised his eyebrow suggestively.

Ren smirked. "Definitely into deep throating you."

Zuko swallowed down with difficulty. He whispered, "What else?"

Talking about this was very obviously turning him on.

Ren brushed his lips against Zuko's. "I think you're the most gorgeous when you're all flushed out riding me, and your dick is bobbing up and down dripping on my stomach, and you're so close to coming you can't form words anymore—"

Zuko had shoved his tongue down his mouth, cutting him off. His hands reached for the bottle of oil on the bedside table. He spread his own legs out, reaching for his hole with his fingers.

"Wait, I want to see!" Ren exclaimed. He sat up and spread the prince's legs even further.

Zuko closed his eyes. He could almost feel Ren's gaze on his skin. He pushed two fingers in. Ren wasn't touching him but he could hear his breath going faster. A few months ago Zuko really had no idea he could one day be so shameless. But with Ren? There was nothing to hide.

Zuko moaned as Ren slid a finger in, joining his own. He opened his eyes and looked down. Ren was watching him as if Zuko was the world's greatest dessert, his tongue licking his lips. Zuko observed how that wet and soft tongue was resting against the corner of Ren's mouth, begging to be used, begging to be allowed to go _somewhere else_.

_Oh, I think I have an idea for another time._

Zuko turned around, lifting his ass in the air.

"Fuck me?" he said, voice cracking just a little.

Ren had never dared to ask to do Zuko from the back, and that new sight alone was almost enough to make him come on the spot. There was no way he would be able to go slow this time. And he was pretty sure that was exactly Zuko's goal.

He spread Zuko's butt cheeks apart with both hands, and his dick slid in between as if it was moving on its own. Ren closed his eyes and inhaled slowly.

_I've never been more turned on in my whole life._

He pushed the tip inside. Zuko moaned loudly. The tip of his cock was dragging against Zuko's flesh, so warm it almost burned, but in the most pleasing way possible. Ren started moving his hips back and forth, already sweating.

"Ah—faster—" Zuko whined.

Ren had squeezed his eyes shut. He gripped Zuko's hips and went faster and deeper. Zuko let out a very loud moan when Ren hit his prostate.

_Agni, this feels so much better!_

Zuko couldn't stop his mouth from gasping, looking for air, as the intense sensations overtook his entire brain.

... and then Ren... stopped... moving...?

Zuko turned around, confused.

"I-I came..." Ren said with a raspy voice, blushing so hard he was almost purple.

The prince paused, then laughed out loud. Ren wanted to disappear. His lover took him in his arms, letting his head rest on his torso.

"Don't worry, I still love you!" Zuko said between giggles, caressing his hair. Ren almost wanted to cry, but he was too exhausted to do so. Zuko kissed him passionately, and guided his hands to his swollen dick, smirking.

"What did you say about deep throating earlier?"

_Oh._

"Just..." Ren inhaled, "Just fuck my face, Prince Zuko."

They rolled around, and Zuko straddled Ren's upper chest. Truth be told, Zuko wouldn't last long either. He slid his dick in his lover's mouth and went harder than he had planned to, his hips jerking forward. Ren suppressed a gag, and made a thumbs up, signaling that this was okay. It snapped the thin cord holding Zuko's sanity together. The prince took a fist full of Ren's hair, and pushed his cock down his throat. Ren's only response was to hum around him, sending shivers down the his spine. Ren's eyes were watering, saliva spilling out of his mouth. He squeezed Zuko's butt and pushed three fingers in. Zuko grabbed his hair, calling his name again and again. He was getting so close, just a little bit longer and... Ah! Ren's fingers had reached his prostate again.

He spilled inside the warm mouth wrapped around his cock in a drawn out moan. He pulled out slowly, completely out of breath, hand cupping Ren's jaw and holding his mouth open. Ren was a total mess, his cheeks crimson red, covered in tears, saliva and come dripping out on his chin, his neck covered in his own come that had leaked from Zuko's ass. And yet, in Zuko's eyes, he was the most beautiful he had ever been.

"Let's go take a bath!" Zuko said, pulling him up with one arm. Ren was completely limp. "Okay fine, I'm gonna carry you." He picked him up princess style.

"Prince Zuko, what are you doing?!" Ren was too exhausted to fight back.

"I told you: from now on, I'm protecting you."


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut; an intense but brief awkward moment

And soon after, an entire year had passed. Zuko rose with the sun, went outside to pray and train for firebending, came back to Ren still sleeping in his bed. They would bathe together, eat breakfast, and Zuko would go to the captain's cabin for the rest of the day. Ren would spend his time reading, sewing and meditating. He also did gymnastics everyday, so that his muscles wouldn't shrink too much. There was a handle attached to the ceiling behind the door that he used for pull ups. Sometimes he would take his sabers out, just to look at them, maybe wipe them up a little. There wasn't enough room to practice. He missed sword fighting a lot. He missed his life at Master Piandao's. Life in seclusion was lonely. But every night, Zuko would come back in hurry, loudly clap the metal door shut and kiss him ferociously, and it would make everything worthwhile.

Zuko's mood was a rollercoaster. But he knew about it and tried his best not to take out his anger on Ren. When he was in a really really bad mood, he would stop himself from speaking, sit down and meditate in front of a candle. Ren's presence was calming. Zuko still couldn't believe he was so lucky to have him by his side.

_Your sister is born lucky. You? You're lucky to be born._

His father's words resonated in his mind every time he had such thoughts. And yet, he wasn't upset.

_Maybe I used up all the luck I had. But if that means I can have Ren, then it's worth giving up everything else._

Yes, he had managed to find a silver lining in this situation. But it was no reason to be complacent. He was the banished prince of the Fire Nation, in a quest to find the Avatar and get back his honor! He still had a long road ahead of him. He had been searching for a year and a half, and every rumors he had heard of were just a bunch of nonsense.

Desperate, he had recruited a couple of new soldiers in the hope that they would be more competent than the morons he had first sailed with. They still hadn't proven useful.

"What a bunch of idiots! They really are good for nothing!" Zuko complained in exasperation.

Ren stroked his back. "Let go. Don't think about them anymore."

Ren had made the prince lay on the bed in his underwear. He himself was bare-chested, his hair cascading over his back, firmly massaging Zuko's shoulders. Although one could think Ren was a fragile little creature given his small frame and his appearance, he was quite strong and his massage was actually quite ruthless. He was a warrior after all. He found a tension point in the middle of Zuko's hips and started kneading the flesh. The new oil they were using smelled super sweet. Zuko hissed when Ren pressed just a little too hard on his back.

"I'm sorry!" Ren apologized immediately.

Zuko hummed. "It's okay, don't worry."

Ren kissed his skin while massaging gently. He kissed everywhere, putting butterfly kisses all over Zuko's back, up and down, caressing the glistening skin with his hands.

Once he reached Zuko's underwear, he said "Massage is over!" and yanked the underwear down.

Zuko lifted his butt in surprise, and Ren caught him, not letting him lie down again.

"What are you doing?!" Zuko asked.

"I'm getting a snack!" Ren announced with an audible grin.

He kissed Zuko all over his ass, squeezing the butt cheeks in circles. He was gently biting and sucking the skin, almost leaving marks but not quite. Zuko bent his back forward, lifting his butt higher and showing off his balls. Ren licked them and took them in his mouth, rubbing Zuko's hardening dick with his hand. The prince was panting heavily, feeling Ren's nose breathing so close to his sensitive hole. He squirmed when Ren started licking up, up, up until his tongue was rimming against Zuko's entrance. It made his head spin.

_Oh Agni, this is the best!_

Ren's tongue circled around the hole a few times and then pushed inside. Zuko let out a loud moan and his voice broke at the same time, making it sound a lot more like a cry of pain than a cry of pleasure. Ren pulled out, worried.

Zuko instantly hated himself. "No I—my voice just cracked—"

The door suddenly opened.

"Prince Zuko! Are you okay? I heard you—"

Time slowed down. Lord Iroh hurriedly took three steps in the room. Zuko was face down on his bed, his underwear down on his knees, his ass hanging up in the air. Lord Iroh slowly turned around and saw another half-naked boy, pulling himself up from the ground behind the door using a handle on the ceiling, his legs crossed as high as possible, probably hoping to hide.

_Oh Agni... this is the worst!_

How does one recover from that? What does one do in such a situation?

Ren broke the deadly silence and cleared his throat.

"Good day, m'lord!" he said with a voice that didn't sound like his own.

_Oh Agni! Why did I say that?_

He jumped down, moving so fast you couldn't see him between each stop. He pulled Zuko's pants up, made him kneel on the bed, kneeled down himself on the ground and bowed very low - all of this in the span of two seconds.

He was internally screaming so hard you could almost see steam coming out of his ears.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Young men, let's cover yourselves and explain this situation to me."

Lord Iroh was talking very slowly, enunciating every syllable very clearly.

_We've got a storm coming..._

***

"So you're telling me, Prince Zuko, that this boy—Ren, right?—has been hiding in your room for... a year and a half...?

"...Yes, Uncle."

_Unbelievable!_

Lord Iroh looked at Ren, studying his face.

"I have seen you before, haven't I?"

"Yes, Lord Iroh," Ren said, avoiding Iroh's gaze at all costs. "I was the student living with Master Piandao. We met when you escorted Prince Zuko there."

"Oh! The boy with the black headscarf! Yes, now I remember you."

The conversation died. Ren and Zuko had no idea where this was going. Iroh rubbed his beard, deep in his thoughts.

"I know you expect me to scold you. And I will," he said, and turned to Ren, encouraging him to raise his head up. "There is no good reason you should be hiding in this tiny room all the time. And I'm so sorry you felt so unsafe that you needed to hide for so long. This is a terrible life, you need to see the sun!"

Ren opened his eyes wide. Was Lord Iroh apologizing to him?

"We will find an excuse to have you on the ship, so that nobody asks any question," Iroh continued. "What about being my nephew's personal bodyguard? If you trained with Master Piandao all this time, you must be able to stand your ground during battle."

"...I-I think I do..." Ren stuttered.

"Then it's all settled! We will need to find you a uniform, and a helmet too. Keep hiding your hair, young man. You'll be safer this way."

"Th-thank you, Lord Iroh."

He rubbed his beard. "We also need to fix this door lock. Noise is passing through."

Ren and Zuko glanced at each other, panicking.

Lord Iroh stood up. "I will be back for dinner. I'm sure you'll behave wisely until then."

He side-eyed them and walked away.

Ren and Zuko stayed silent for a while.

"I can't believe you managed to break a metal door lock." Ren finally said, a sheepish smile on his lips.

Zuko face-palmed at his own stupidity.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: blood, mentions of attempted assault (not descriptive at all), two quite gore sentences at the end.

Zuko and Ren were both the same height and not very tall, although Zuko looked taller because of the high ponytail. When engulfed in the soldier helmet and uniform, Ren seemed so small he looked like a puppet. He was introduced to the crew after their next stop on land as Zuko's new bodyguard. The crew didn't say anything, but so many thoughts could be felt floating in the air.

_What, is he a child?_

_Why would the prince need a dedicated bodyguard?_

_Is he getting paid better than us?_

_Agni, I knew I should have asked for a promotion!_

Ren was glad the helmet covered his face, as he was blushing extremely hard. There was no way anybody would believe all of this! But well, the one telling the lie was Agni's Son after all, banished or not. Of course no one dared to question him.

A couple of weeks passed. Ren made sure he was still discreetly sneaking into Zuko's room when he went alone, and he finally participated during morning prayers. Other than that, not many things had changed. Lord Iroh would come in the prince's room more often and together with Ren they would drink tea and play Pai Sho. Ren was a surprisingly strong opponent. He was still very uncomfortable being in the presence of the man known as the Dragon of the West, but he was thankful for Iroh's effort to make him feel at ease.

Most of the crew didn't mind Ren's presence on the ship. He helped them with the cooking, and they were glad he brought the food to the prince's room himself, because nobody wanted to be around Zuko anyway.

The two recently recruited soldiers, however, seemed really hostile.

One evening, they cornered Ren in a corridor.

"What is a midget like you doing on this ship?" the taller man said, while the other one had grabbed him by the collar.

"I heard your face is very pretty, are you really a boy?" he said with a creepy voice.

They entered with him in a storage room, and locked the door behind them.

***

_Oh Agni, oh Agni..._

He ran across the corridor and reached for the door handle.

_Please don't be here !_

He opened the metal door.

_Oh no..._

Zuko and Iroh were playing Pai Sho. They turned around and looked at him. Ren closed the door and slid down against the wall.

His hair wasn't white anymore.

It was red.

He was completely covered in blood.

"WHAT HAPPENED?!" Zuko screamed, jumping on his feet. Ren was shaking heavily, covering his eyes.

"I-I... I had no choice..." He sobbed. Zuko took him in his arms.

He whispered "What happened?"

"The two new soldiers... they... caught me and started... tugging at my scarf and my clothes and..."

"Are you hurt? DID THEY HURT YOU?"

"No! No no no! I-I'm not hurt..."

Iroh stood up and asked calmly "Where are they?"

Ren slowly breathed in and out. "In the storage room on the third level, second door to the left... I- I have to go back and clean up." He closed his eyes as he was finishing his sentence.

Iroh put his hand on his shoulder. "I'll do it for you."

"Uncle, I'll go with you!"

"No, you won't. You have someone to take care of already." He walked away.

Zuko and Ren looked at each other, Zuko studying Ren's face, Ren worried to find disgust in Zuko's eyes. There was none.

Zuko took his hand and pulled him near the bathtub. He helped him remove his stained clothes and warmed up a basin of water. He wiped his body with a damp cloth, his face, his neck, his arms, gently. Ren didn't know what to say. He washed his hair himself in the basin, scrubbing off the blood.

Once entirely clean, he looked up at Zuko once again. The prince's eyes were full of anger.

"You told me you didn't get hurt."

Ren raised his eyebrows. "Yes?"

"Then what's that?" Zuko cupped his face near his left eye. There was a commotion, and the skin was turning purple. "You got hit. And there too." He moved his hand to palm Ren's left shoulder.

With the adrenaline, Ren hadn't realized how violently he got pushed against the wall in the storage room. Zuko was boiling with anger.

"Even when I'm with you, I can't protect you."

"It's not your fault-"

"IT IS MY FAULT! I recruited those soldiers myself!"

There was a pause. Ren silently started to cry.

"You can't blame yourself for everything," he whispered, unsuccessfully holding back tears.

Zuko's voice broke, and he sobbed. "If I was stronger, nobody would dare do anything to you."

Ren cupped his face, wiping off Zuko's tears with his thumb. They rested their forehead against each other's.

"I, too, have to become stronger."

***

Lord Iroh expected to find wounded soldiers or even corpses when he walked into the storage room. What he found was much more unsettling. Body parts were scattered all over the floor and the walls, and splashes of blood reached the ceiling. _What in Agni's reign happened?_


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut after they take a bath together.

The two sabers clashed in a loud sound. Zuko was much stronger than him, so Ren knew he had no chance if he stayed in this position. He jumped backward and dodged another saber swipe.

Lord Iroh was monitoring their training, offering from time to time some advice on foot positioning and so on. Ren, for the very first time, had agreed to duel Zuko in a sword fight.

_I can't get stronger if I avoid fighting._

He forced himself not to dodge too much, and it tired him quite fast. Zuko managed to disarm him soon after.

"So that's how you fight when you're not dodging everything!" Zuko sounded actually impressed.

"That's also how I fight when I haven't practiced for a year and a half." Ren wasn't satisfied at all.

Zuko grinned. "I can't wait to see what you can do once you get all your strength back!"

The surrounding soldiers stopped in their tracks, looking at the prince's face. Once Zuko noticed, they all hurried back to what they were supposed to do.

_So that's what he looks like when he smiles?_

Ren practiced a few moves in the air. "My wrists are all stiff and my shoulders feel sore already."

He stretched his elbow above his head, facing the ocean. Zuko smirked and attacked him from behind, but the moment his saber slashed down, Ren was already behind him, and had locked an arm around his neck.

"Prince Zuko?!"

Zuko laughed. "I wanted to check if you could still dodge like that!"

Ren released him. He narrowed his eyes, smiling, but didn't say anything. He put both of his sabers in front of him, his eyes closed. Zuko took it as a signal to attack him again. He went from the side, slashing across. Ren pushed him back using his own momentum. He charged again and again, trying to break Ren's defense. Zuko wanted to test his reflexes, not his strength. Ren put both of his saber's handle against each other, as if he was assembling two parts of a staff. He moved forward, spinning the sabers. Zuko took one step back, then another, and Ren used the opportunity to lunge forward and trip him. Zuko fell on his bum.

"How did you do that?" the prince asked with stars in his eyes. "That was so cool!"

"Hum, with my foot?"

"No, the two spinning sabers! Teach me!"

They trained together for another hour.

***

"Phew, I'm exhausted!" Ren sat in the bathtub, arms over the edge.

Zuko took a glance as he was rinsing himself, and his face heat up when he saw Ren's chest displayed like that, water dripping down his rosy nipples.

 _Calm down, you beast!_ Zuko thought to himself.

"Why did you avoid fighting against me for so long?" he asked to force his brain to think about something else.

Ren didn't answer right away.

"... I was afraid of you," he said after a while.

Zuko turned around and looked at him, incredulous.

"I was afraid to touch the Son of Agni. I know you thought I didn't believe, but I do, and I always have. And you used to scare me to death."

Zuko stepped into the bathtub, sitting between Ren's legs.

"Well now I wonder which of your body parts hasn't touched me yet."

Ren snorted.

Zuko massaged his leg gently. "Do I still scare you?"

"No." Ren took his other hand and kissed it.

"When did I stop scaring you?"

"When we drew turtleducks together."

"What?! That early?! Then why did you keep refusing any duel after that?"

Ren smirked. "I didn't want to offend the only friend I ever made by beating him up."

Zuko squinted his eyes. "I never knew you could be so cocky."

Ren laughed out loud.

"Speaking of cock," he said in a low tone, lips on the back of Zuko's fingers. "I have a request, Your Majesty."

Zuko raised his eyebrow. Ren being so confident had always been a huge turn-on for him, and it happened way too rarely.

"Would your precious lips grace my swollen length with their caress?" He licked Zuko's fingers.

_Oh, maybe he wasn't the only beast in this room after all._

"As long as you never stop talking to me like that," Zuko said as he thrusted his fingers into Ren's mouth. Ren's foot slid against his inner thigh, rubbing up and down, lightly touching his hardening cock every time.

They suddenly got up at the same time, and Ren threw himself onto the bed.

"You're gonna get it wet!" Zuko said.

"And you're gonna dry it with your body heat, my dear firebender!"

Ren pulled Zuko to lay on top of him and kissed him thoroughly, running his fingers against his scalp. He could never get enough of the sensation of his lover's body pressing down on his own. Zuko had a hand entangled in his long hair, the other traveling down his torso, lightly squeezing the skin. Ren was so _soft_ and _sweet_ and _gorgeous_. His mouth joined his hand, leaving kisses and soft bites all over him. Zuko's chin rubbed against Ren's hard tip, making him squirm a little.

"What, are you that sensitive?" Zuko smirked.

He wanted to take his time. He kissed Ren's inner thigh, putting his knee above his shoulder. He softly rubbed his nose up and down the skin, breathing against Ren's arousal. It made Ren go crazy, soft voice already whimpering Zuko's name. Zuko sucked the skin at the joint between the butt cheek and the leg, leaving a bright red mark. It felt so good Ren could probably come just from that with enough patience. But that's not what he wanted right now. He was bending his hips forward, desperate for contact. And contact he got! Zuko licked his entire shaft, bottom to top, circling around the tip, and Ren had to close his eyes or else he would come right on the prince's face.

"Ah... Zuko! Don't torture me like that!"

Lewd sights were definitely Ren's biggest weakness, and it had led to many premature orgasms. Zuko mentally picked which outcome he preferred, and opted for swallowing. The other outcome, which was as enticing in Zuko's opinion, would still be there next time they do it anyway.

Zuko pushed Ren's cock inside his mouth, slowly. Ren was panting loudly.

"Ah, wait, Zuko!"

Zuko stopped in his motion.

"Put your tongue above your teeth," Ren asked shyly.

Zuko did as he was told, and it went much more smoothly. And it felt good! So good Ren wanted to cry! He was so, so glad he had finally found the courage to ask for a blowjob.

Zuko put his other leg over his shoulder, and went to town. He could feel Ren's feet curling on his back, his thighs twitching, Ren forcing himself not to strangle him between his legs and damn if that wouldn't be the nicest death you could hope for. Now he knew why Ren liked blowing him so much.

Ren had his eyes squeezed shut but couldn't stop himself from putting his hands over Zuko's head, and maybe it made everything even more difficult, because the motions he felt with his hands meant he had no choice but to picture Zuko's mouth bobbing up and down his shaft in his mind. Once he felt he couldn't refrain from pushing on the prince's head anymore, he grabbed and squeezed the bedsheets instead, and came in a loud moan calling Agni's name, spilling inside Zuko's mouth in multiple spurts of bliss. The prince swallowed it all, looking at him right in the eyes, and lay by his side, marveling at Ren's post-orgasm face. He tucked a strand of hair behind his lover's ear.

"I love you, Ren."

Ren kissed him so well he felt like he was drowning in an ocean of love. Ren's hand was already working hard down there, pumping fast and steady, the other hand on his ass grabbing and squeezing eagerly.

_Stiff wrists you said?_

Zuko quickly became undone under Ren's care and climaxed in his palm. Ren kissed all over his face and neck and wiped his hand clean with a towel. He spooned Zuko, an arm over his belly, hand caressing his heart.

"I love you too, Zuko," he said as he kissed his shoulder.

_And I wish things could stay like this forever._


	12. Chapter 12

After three years at sea, Zuko finally found the Avatar hiding in a small village in the South Pole. And then the Avatar escaped. And it was a twelve years-old kid. And that kid had a flying bison. And that kid and his bison had stuck the entire ship into an iceberg. And on top of all of this, Zuko had taken a boomerang to the head. _Zuko had taken a stupid! boomerang! to! the! head!_

"WHERE WERE YOU?" he shouted as he slammed the door open and found Ren cleaning up the mess he and the Avatar had made fighting in his room.

"Making tea for Lord Iroh," Ren replied in a monotone voice, without looking at the prince.

"Why didn't you help me fight? Why didn't you help me capture the Avatar? I could have gotten my honor BACK!" Zuko was raging.

"And then what?" Ren finally looked at him, with piercing eyes, but speaking calmly. "What happens when you get your honor back? You'll go back to your home, and you'll be the famous prince of the Fire Nation who found the Avatar, fine." He inhaled slowly. "Then what happens to us? We both know there's absolutely no way the Fire Lord will allow his son to have a boyfriend. He literally outlawed same-sex relationship."

"Are you saying you sabotaged me on purpose?" Zuko boiled. "So that you can keep me all to yourself for longer?" There was hatred in his voice.

"That's absolutely not what I meant!" Ren had raised his voice for the first time in his life. He sighed, and left the room without a word. There was snow to shovel off the deck.

***

The crew stayed stationed in a nearby port for a few days.

"An Agni Kai?!" Ren asked, shocked. "You fought in an Agni Kai against a commander?! Weren't we supposed to lay low until the ship got repaired?"

He looked at Zuko, worried, glancing all over him to check if he didn't get hurt.

An Agni Kai was a firebending duel under Agni's eyes. The likeliest outcome would usually be death. Zuko was lucky he had survived two Agni Kai in his life already.

"Some soldiers came on the ship and interrogated the crew," Ren said, "does it have anything to do with that?"

"Did you tell them anything?" Zuko asked.

"No, I stayed hidden. What were they looking for?"

Zuko clenched his teeth. "They were making sure we didn't keep any information away from them. That damn crew, what a bunch of traitors! They told him everything!"

Ren pinched his lips. "... No, they're not traitors. They just followed orders."

Zuko clenched his fists so hard fire came out of them, forming dagger-like shapes. "Yes they are! Now, because of them, Commander Zhao is racing against us to find the Avatar! As if we didn't struggle enough already!"

"Zuko, calm down..."

"I WON'T CALM DOWN!"

Zuko left, slamming the door shut.

***

"Sir, we heard from a reliable source that the Avatar has arrived on Kyoshi Island!" a soldier said through Zuko's door.

The prince rejoiced. "Then let's go!"

"We're going to Kyoshi Island?!" Ren gasped.

All this time, he had kept the doll he stole from the puppet-maker. The man said the doll was inspired by a statue on Kyoshi Island. Ren loved it, and made so many clothes for it. The doll's face was painted white with red and black motifs around the eyes. Ren had spent more than two years sewing tiny colorful dresses for it and embroidering them so much one couldn't see the color of the fabric anymore. It was finally time to see the real statue in all its glory!

"Let's take out those new rhinos," Zuko said to a soldier.

They had added three huge rhinos to the crew during the ship's repairs.

"Hum, I'm a bit scared of them, I'll go by foot if you don't mind," Ren said once the soldier had left.

Zuko sighed, and nodded.

Ren knew there was absolutely no way Zuko would wait for him to go see the statue first before attacking the village. He snuck away from the group and ran to the village as fast as he could. Good thing the rhinos were not yet accustomed to the crew, it slowed them down considerably. He probably had at least ten or fifteen minutes of peace before chaos would come. The village was very tiny, it consisted of three streets joining up in the center, where the statue was standing on a pillar. She was absolutely magnificent. She had a golden helmet and golden fans in her hands, and her clothes were a dark shade of green. The helmet had an ornament that looked like the sun, with rays coming out from the center of the forehead.

Reminiscing of the puppet-maker, Ren extended his arm toward the statue, putting it side by side with his treasured doll and checking how different they were. They looked alike, but the face paintings were quite different, and Ren actually preferred the doll's make-up. When he picked her up she didn't have any clothing, so he had to use whatever he had on hand. His favorite outfit was a pale shade of green, and he had embroidered white and pink peonies all over the sleeves and the back. The doll looked like a youthful, more delicate version of the statue.

"Who are you?"

He heard a feminine voice coming from the side. A young woman that looked exactly like the statue was talking to him from a few meters away, fans folded in her hands, ready to be used as throwing weapons.

_Good thing I didn't wear my uniform, or I'd be dead already._

She looked at the doll in his hand. "What's that?"

He showed it to her. "Some old man made it after he visited this place many decades ago. He told me the statue was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He had no idea who she was."

"This is Avatar Kyoshi, the Avatar from two generations ago. You're standing on her homeland." She took the doll and followed the embroidered patterns with her finger. "She never had such pretty garments. Where do they come from?"

"I made them."

She looked at Ren, surprised. He removed his scarf from his face and smiled.

"They're beautiful!" She smiled back.

She was so pretty! Ren blushed all the way to his ears and looked away.

They heard a loud shout. "WHERE ARE YOU HIDING THE AVATAR?!" Of course it was Zuko's voice.

Another boy shouted, "Suki! Where are you? The Fire Nation is attacking!!!"

"I have to go," Suki said to Ren. She gave back the doll and ran toward the noise.

"Wait! What's your name?" he shouted.

"I'm Suki!" she replied from afar, and jumped over a roof. "I'm here, Sokka!" She dodged a fireball and disappeared.

_Oh. Of course she's called Suki. That was a dumb question._

Ren ran around the village, catching glimpses of the fight. Zuko spared no house and lit everything on fire. _Even the statue._

The Avatar flew away, and Zuko tried to follow him with the rhinos, but failed.

_Stupid flying bison!_

All the crew went back to the ship and sailed north.

Once they were alone in his room, Zuko grabbed Ren by the collar.

"YOU RAN AWAY!" he yelled.

"AND YOU DESTROYED THEIR VILLAGE!" Ren yelled back.

"WHO CARES ABOUT THIS VILLAGE! I NEED TO CATCH THE AVATAR!"

"Who cares? Who cares?! Zuko! They were innocent!" There was disgust in Ren's eyes.

"IF YOU CARE SO MUCH ABOUT THEM, THEN WHY DON'T YOU STAY WITH THOSE PAINTED LADIES?"

The words resonated in the silence.

_Is that really what you want?_

Ren slept in the captain's cabin that night, supporting his head with his arms folded on the table. When he woke up, he found a thick embroidered blanket over his shoulders.

***

They didn't talk to each other for the entire day. Ren looked at Zuko like he was a stranger. He stayed down longer than the prince during morning prayer. He didn't eat what Zuko had put in his plate during dinner. He washed himself alone and didn't bathe. He didn't go to bed when Zuko did.

After two hours, Zuko got out of bed and went around the cabin, looking for Ren. He was only wearing silk pants.

He heard someone whispering. "What are you doing half-naked in the cold?!"

Ren was sitting on the rooftop. He pulled him up and rolled him in the thick blanket he was previously wrapped in. Zuko was shivering, but didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say. Ren understood, and hugged him.

"I'm not that mad," Ren admitted, "but we'll have to agree to disagree on this."

Zuko was still frowning, avoiding his gaze.

Ren continued. "There aren't many things I believe in, but what you did goes against everything I was ever taught."

Zuko still kept silent, nibbling on his lower lip.

"Where is the good in this? You destroy and terrify every place you go to." Ren sighed. "I don't want to be a part of that. I don't want to represent the Fire Nation that way. This is not right."

Zuko's hands were freezing cold.

"Let's go back inside, Prince Zuko. You'll get sick."

The prince complied without a word. They lay on the bed, their backs facing each other, not touching.

After a while, Zuko whispered "It's fine. If you don't want to get involved, I won't force you to."

Ren fell asleep soon after. Zuko got up, and spent the night looking at his maps, clenching at the waterbender necklace he had found. _I'll catch the Avatar myself._


	13. Chapter 13

Well, the plan with the necklace had failed miserably. And a few weeks later, the Avatar had gotten captured by Commander -now Admiral- Zhao. He was kept in a very well guarded fortress on a swampy island.

Of course Zuko sneaked in. But this time, it was Ren's idea.

***

Ren was peeling potatoes, sitting near a metal barrel where a fire was lit, trying to warm his freezing hands. The air temperature on the ship had been nearing zero way too often these days. The atmosphere was a bit tense. The crew captain had fought with Zuko on the deck a few hours earlier because there was a storm coming - a literal one this time - and Zuko still wanted to pursue the Avatar.

"I'm sick of taking his orders, and I'm tired of chasing the Avatar!" the crew captain complained.

One of the soldiers side-eyed Ren, but he looked like he didn't mind at all. During the past year, Ren had become a full fledged soldier and was considered as much a part of the crew as anybody else. Still, they were usually cautious not to bad mouth the prince in his presence, because even though nobody had ever said anything, everybody knew that Ren never slept in his designated bed, and that the prince was very friendly to him. There was a tacit agreement that peace would be preserved if nobody told anyone about the situation.

"Who does Zuko think he is?!" the captain said, and Ren raised his eyebrows in disapproval, hearing the prince's name without his title. He wondered if he should retort something when a voice came from behind.

"Do you really want to know?" Lord Iroh had come downstairs, and sat next to Ren. The captain gulped loudly, but Iroh wasn't upset by his remark.

He told them the story of a young prince, full of ambition, who insisted on attending a war council. He was allowed inside, under the restriction that he mustn't talk. A general suggested sending a full regiment to the great capital of the Earth Kingdom, Ba Sing Se. He knew that the regiment was comprised of mostly new recruits. And that was entirely the point! The new recruits would be sacrificed first, and right after their defeat, another more skilled regiment would be sent against the tired forces of the Earth Kingdom. The young prince couldn't believe what he had heard, and sprang up. It was sending them to their death! He realized too late that he had broken his promise of keeping silent. He was forced to fight in an Agni Kai against the man he had just offended. When he turned around and faced his opponent, he was expecting to see the general. But standing before him was his own father. He begged for mercy, apologizing on the ground. The Fire Lord told him to rise and fight. The young prince refused, crying. The Fire Lord told him he would teach him a lesson that cannot be forgotten, and he burned the face of his own son without blinking. By refusing to fight, the prince had shown shameful weakness. As punishment, he was banished, and sent to capture the Avatar. Only then could he return with his honor.

The crew members looked at each other, silent.

"So capturing the Avatar is the only chance he has of things returning to normal," the crew captain wondered.

"Things will never return to normal. But the important thing is, the Avatar gives him hope."

Iroh turned around to ask Ren for a cup of tea, but only a bucket of perfectly peeled potatoes was left.

***

Silently, the red demon led the way. Running through the night, they spotted a carrier led by two sleepy soldiers. They jumped under it, grasping the underside of the frame. Once they reached the gates, another soldier came to inspect the carrier. They sneaked inside of it once the soldier had checked everywhere, and passed through the gates unseen. The blue demon pointed to an opening at the bottom of the outer wall. They went down the waterway, slipping easily through the fence. Ice cold water reached their knees. They walked slowly, careful not to make any sound.

Four soldiers were guarding the Avatar's prison. The blue demon took one down with a fire bolt, alerting the others. Two more came in the corridor, and started throwing flame punches forward. The red demon threw a bucket of water on them, while the blue demon tied them to the pipe running on the ceiling, joining the first guard. The fourth guard didn’t realize what was happening to him before he joined them as well.

The Avatar was tied to two pillars using chains. It was a torture device made for display. The blue demon raised his saber high and slashed down. The chains easily snapped. He cut open the metal cuffs and freed the young boy. They didn’t have a lot of time left. They searched for the Avatar’s staff in several rooms, and once they finally found it, they ran as fast as they could across the courtyard. No guard had noticed them yet. They followed the shadows of the walls, trying to find a discreet place to climb.

Of course someone rang the alarm right as they threw a rope over the wall. The red demon climbed the whole rope in two big jumps, but the soldiers managed to cut it before the other two could reach its middle. He fought against the dozen of guards patrolling the outer wall, sabers as precise as clockwork. Soldiers flew down the wall. The Avatar and the blue demon sprinted towards the gates, but they got closed before they could reach them.

The Avatar took his staff and, twirling it above his head, he lifted both himself and his savior from the ground and landed on top of the inner wall, joining the red demon. But the soldiers were arriving with ladders, climbing fast and quickly overwhelming them. The Avatar punched and kicked the soldiers until he could accumulate several bamboo ladders, and made his new friends use them as vaulting poles, trying to reach the outer wall. Unfortunately it was no use, as the soldiers burned their own ladders with fire bending. The three of them landed on the ground in the middle of dozens of armed soldiers.

The blue and red demons fought back to back, moving in parallel motions, like two sides of the same coin. The Avatar took down several guards with powerful wind blows. The soldiers quickly realized that they were no match against the three young warriors, and resorted to fire bending, even though they knew it was prohibited against the Avatar.

The courtyard became a fire hell in a instant.

"STOP! We want the Avatar alive!" Admiral Zhao yelled at the guards. He had come down of his watchtower.

Reacting in the blink of an eye, the blue demon put both of his blades under the kid's throat, blocking him from behind. One flick of the wrist and his head would fly off.

Zhao had no option left. "Open the gates!" he ordered.

If the Avatar was killed, it would render his search useless, as the Avatar would be reborn as a waterbender, and he would have to start all over again.

All three of them slowly walked backward, the blue demon’s blades still under the boy’s throat. As they reached the border of the forest, an arrow shot the blue demon right in the head, hitting his mask and knocking him out. He fell back on the ground, unconscious. The red demon dodged the other arrow coming for him. He moved so fast one couldn't see his trajectory.

 _Incredible! How did he do that?_ the Avatar wondered. The red demon went to check on his companion, and removed the blue mask. The Avatar could recognize that face even in the dark. It was Zuko!!! Zhao had launched his soldiers forward, and it was time to run away. The red demon and the Avatar looked at each other for a split second, and reached a silent agreement. When the soldiers caught up with them, only a cloud of dust was left.

They laid Zuko on the forest grass, supporting his head with fallen leaves. The red demon lifted his mask up. He had eyes of steel and a lot of worry on his face. He was shivering, visibly cold. He didn’t say anything. It’s not like he had anything to say anyway. He expected the Avatar to run away, and he wouldn’t stop him. But instead, the Avatar sat a few meters away and started talking.

“Hey, I’m Aang. What’s your name?"

No answer. Aang sighed.

“When I was younger, I used to have friends in all four nations. I had so much fun with my friend Kuzon, we played so many times together."

Zuko opened his eyes, still dizzy.

"If the war didn't happen, do you think we could have been friends?" Aang asked, but his face didn’t show any hope.

Zuko jumped on his feet and launched a fireball in his direction. Aang dodged and flew away, jumping from tree to tree. Zuko looked at Ren, but there was no anger in his eyes. They went back to the ship, walking in silence.

The next morning, Ren woke up wrapped in Zuko's arms. He felt a small kiss between his shoulder blades.

"Thank you," Zuko whispered.

It felt like an eternity of cold had just ended.


	14. Chapter 14

Admiral Zhao had suddenly decided to requisition all of Zuko’s crew for a special mission to the North Pole, to capture the Avatar. He walked into the prince’s quarters like it was his own, and announced that he had already taken every single soldier on the ship with him, including the rhinos. Even the cook, deplored Lord Iroh. Zuko was flabbergasted. Zhao inspected the room, looking at the two swords decorating the wall above the bed.

“I didn’t know you were skilled with broadswords, Prince Zuko," he said.

Zuko looked away. “I’m not. They’re antique. Just decorative."

Zhao felt one of the blades with his fingers. “Have you heard of the blue and red spirits, General Iroh?"

“Only rumors," Iroh replied. "I don’t think they’re real."

“They’re real, all right. They’re criminals, and enemies of the Fire Nation. But I have a feeling justice will catch up with them soon." He stepped outside the room. “General Iroh, my offer to accompany the mission still stands... if you change your mind."

Ren crawled out of his hiding place behind the bathtub. Zuko looked at him, jaw tightly clenched but a desperate air in his eyes. He sat on the bed, head in his hands, trying to calm down.

“It’s a lovely night for a walk," Iroh said. “Why don’t you two join me? It would clear your head."

Zuko lay on the bed, eyes closed. Ren glanced back and forth between him and his uncle. Iroh sighed.

“Or just stay in your room and sit in the dark. Whatever makes you happy," he said as he walked away, living the door open. There was nobody left on the ship except for the two teenagers.

Ren was still standing in the middle of the room. He thought for a while, but couldn’t really come up with anything relevant to say, so he climbed on the bed and lay onto Zuko, his head resting on his boyfriend's chest.

He wasn’t expecting anything, but Zuko still put his hand over his head, fingers disappearing in the feathery white locks. Ren hummed against his heart.

“He still has no idea you even exist, right?" Zuko asked.

“Yes," Ren said with a nod.

“At least there’s one good thing in this."

Zuko hugged him, bringing his face up to kiss him. Ren kissed him back, slow and tender, and then kissed his cheek, his chin, his eyelid and his forehead. His finger traced along his nose, as if he was discovering him for the first time. He traced all over his face, drawing unidentified shapes and symbols on his skin. His finger stopped moving once he reached the border of the scar.

 _Does it still hurt?_ he didn’t ask, but Zuko closed his eyes and let him touch it.

The skin was thick and lumpy. It felt hard to the touch. Zuko caressed the back of his hand, not stopping him.

"Disgusting, right?" he asked, faking a smirk.

"It is not," Ren replied, sincere.

His fingers reached the ear. The shape was completely different from the other one. Ren raised his hand and turned his wrist just a little, hovering above the prince's face. He could hide most of the scar with his hand.

_Is that what your father saw?_

A squeaking noise came from the corridor. Weren't they supposed to be alone? They both stood up.

The corridor was empty. They went to the cabin. Nothing there either. Zuko turned around, looking through the window. They heard a very loud booming noise. Ren jumped on Zuko, shielding him with his body. The entire ship blew up in an inferno. The windows of the cabin exploded with the heat, projecting the two boys out.

Iroh heard the explosion and ran back to the ship. The flames were more than five meters tall. There was no way anybody could have survived.

And yet.

He heard gasping noises in the water. He fetched a rope and threw it as far as he could, and he felt someone grasping it. He pulled Zuko out of the water. He had bleeding cuts all over his face. Ren was unconscious in his arms.

They found shelter in a colonial village a few kilometers away, where a lady let them rest in her house. She gave them some food and went to fetch the doctor. Zuko and Iroh talked for a while, whispering.

The doctor arrived with the lady, and a few moments later she told them to come to the room Ren was resting in. They sat next to him. He was still asleep.

"I am worried about your friend," the doctor said. "He got badly wounded. It will take days before he can walk again."

Ren opened his eyes, barely registering what he was seeing. Zuko grabbed his hand gently.

"We cannot stay here, Zuko. The ship will leave for the North Pole very soon," Iroh said.

Zuko clenched his teeth, and slowly nodded. Iroh offered a rather large sum of money to make the doctor take care of Ren until he was healthy again.

Ren squeezed the prince's hand lightly. "Go. Don't worry about me. We will meet again."

The medication was making him feverish. He rubbed the back of Zuko's hand with his thumb.

"When you need me the most, look for a crowbat, tell it to fetch me," Ren whispered.

Zuko put his hand over his eyes. "Sleep now. You're saying nonsense."

He stayed by Ren's side, watching his sleeping face for as long as he could.

***

Lord Iroh took Zhao's offer to go with him to the North Pole.

"I am truly sorry about what happened to your nephew. It is a shame. A real shame," Zhao said. "The Fire Lord will be devastated to hear about his son's death."

Lord Iroh seemed really pained. He accepted the condolences. "I will be honored to serve as your general in this mission to capture the Avatar." He raised his cup. "To the Fire Nation!"

Zhao joined him. "To victory!"

Later, when Iroh walked into the corridor, he passed by a guard in full armor. "Our plan is working perfectly. Zhao doesn't suspect a thing."

The guard remove the front of his helmet, revealing his face. He had fresh cuts all over his face, and a very large burn the shape of a hand on his left eye. "You didn't have to do this."

"No nephew of mine is going to stow away on a ship without some backup."

"Thank you, Uncle."

They heard a sound of a door opening.

"Someone's coming," Iroh said. "Stay hidden until we get to the North Pole, and the Avatar will be yours. Good luck."

They parted ways.


	15. Chapter 15

Ba Sing Se. The great capital of the Earth Kingdom. A gigantic city separated in three huge circles. One for the poor, one for the rich, and one for the aristocracy. Zuko and Iroh gave up on everything they had left and hoped that they could start a new life there. Once the mission at the North Pole had failed, they floated away on a raft for three whole days. Zuko’s sister, Azula, found them and offered to take them back to the Fire Nation, but it was a ruse. She was sent to get rid of them, and to overtake the capture of the Avatar. Zuko and Iroh fled, and were casted as criminals.

Hiding their Fire Nation heritage by cutting their hair off, they traveled as refugees across the Earth Kingdom, heading to the famous city of Ba Sing Se.

Far, far away, Ren traveled alone, not sure of where to go. He had never been outside of the Fire Nation by himself. He discreetly prayed every morning, hoping for a sign, a direction, anything that could help him find his prince.

He walked through forests and plains and fields, talking to travelers, trying to get a sense of where he was. Journeying without a map was definitely not a good idea. He got lost in a red forest full of maple and gingko trees.

_Well, at least this place is gorgeous._

The forest was very quiet and peaceful. He bathed near a waterfall, taking the time to properly wash and untangle his hair that had become a total mess under the headscarf he always wore. He didn't do it often, as his hair was so long it would take ages to dry, and he would catch a cold every time. He put his clothes on and sat near his small bonfire, damp strands of white hair flowing down like a river on his shoulders.

He hummed into the night, singing a song his parents had taught him long ago. It was one of the only memories he had of them. The song didn't have lyrics, but it still had a lot of meanings. It felt profound, and old. Maybe older than humans.

He heard leaves ruffle behind him. Not moving, he prepared himself to run away, evaluating which route was the most optimal. He didn't carry any weapon, only a small knife. His sabers were long gone in the ship explosion.

A masculine voice asked, "What is a pretty girl doing in the middle of the night here?"

He turned around. There was a tall teenager, probably his age, tilting his head as he waited for an answer. He had swords that looked like hooks in each hand. He didn't seem unfriendly.

"I'm traveling," Ren said.

"Alone? Isn't that dangerous?"

"I'm doing okay."

Right as Ren finished his sentence, four Fire Nation soldiers ambushed them. The boy attacked two at the same time, head first. He grabbed their spears with his hooks and used them as ladders to reach their heads, kicking them so hard their helmets flew off. Ren dodged another guard, lunging forward as he saw an opening. He stabbed right into the armpit with his knife. The soldier wailed in pain, dropping his sword. Ren took it and blocked an attack from behind. The other teenager knocked the man out with a high kick to the head. They took down the four soldiers in just a few seconds.

"Wow, you really know how to fight!" the boy exclaimed. "I'm Jet. What's your name?"

"I'm Ren."

"You shouldn't stay here alone. We're not far from the hideout. You should come with me!"

Ren nodded, wondering if it was a good idea, but still followed him. Once they reached the bottom of a very large tree, Jet grabbed a rope coming from above and offered a hand.

"Hold onto me. Someone's gonna pull us up," he said as he put his arm around Ren's waist.

At least ten meters above the ground, hidden behind red leaves, a vast array of tree huts and wooden bridges spread through the branches, forming a small secret village.

"What is this place?" Ren marveled at the sight.

There were children playing around campfires, some of them eating, others telling stories.

"It's the Freedom Fighters hideout! It's beautiful, and more importantly, the Fire Nation can't find us."

"Why would the Fire Nation want to find you?"

"Well, I guess you could say we've been causing them a little trouble. See, they took over a nearby Earth Kingdom town a few years back, but we took it back a couple weeks ago. Since then, they're trying to invade again. We've been ambushing their troops, cutting off their supply lines, and doing anything we can to mess with them."

"But aren't you all just kids? How do you do all of this?"

"We have nothing else left to do. See that guy with the straw hat over there? His name's Longshot. His town got burned down by the Fire Nation. We found The Duke, that kid next to him, trying to steal our food. I don't think he ever really had a home."

"What about you?"

Jet paused. "The Fire Nation killed my parents. I was only eight years old. That day changed me forever."

Ren put a hand on his shoulder. "Then we're the same. I lost my parents to Fire Nation soldiers when I was six."

"I'm so sorry," Jet said with a compassionate smile.

He offered Ren a place to stay for the night.

The next morning, he took Ren on a mission with them. A lot of Fire Nation soldiers had been seen patrolling through the woods recently, and the Freedom Fighters planned an ambush. They were positioned in the treetops, spread enough to cover a large area. They communicated by whistling foxdove birdsongs.

"Don't worry, I'll teach you how to do that!" Jet said to Ren.

"No need," Ren replied, and answered Longshot's call with an impeccable whistle, then jumped to another tree further away. The jump was at least six meters long. _No fear of heights, huh?_ Jet was impressed.

Unfortunately, they stayed observing from the trees all day long for nothing. Nobody crossed the forest that day.

After the dinner, when the lights had started to fade, Jet and Ren sat side by side, chatting.

"You're a mystery to me. Where did you learn to whistle like that? And your fighting! Yesterday you only had a knife and yet you took down a soldier twice your size!"

Ren shrugged. "You need to develop those kinds of skills when you travel alone, I guess."

"You're so cool!" Jet said, stars in his eyes. "Why don't you stay here with us? You could have your revenge on the Fire Nation, and you'd be a great addition to our team."

Ren thought for a while.

"I don't think I really seek revenge that much," he said, "but I guess I can help you. I might have to suddenly leave one day though," he added, looking at Jet.

"No worries. We all have our little secrets," Jet winked.

_Living here, huh? I don't have anywhere to go anyway. And I won't have to hide my hair..._

"Sounds good," Ren smiled at him. Jet's heart skipped a beat.

"So... tell me more about you. Not your secrets, I mean, stuff like your age and stuff."

"I'm eighteen. You?"

"I'm eighteen too."

The conversation died.

"Have you got—" they both started asking at the same time.

"Go ahead," Ren said first.

Jet dared put his hand over Ren's.

"Have you got... a boyfriend?" he asked with a husky voice.

Ren glanced at his hand, confused.

"I do."

"Oh."

Jet removed his hand swiftly.

"... Sorry I just... Well, I wanted to make sure."

"No worries."

"What were you asking?"

"Have you got a bathtub? I haven't taken a proper bath in over a month."


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut once Ren gets back to his hut.

Deep into the night, Ren turned and twisted in his bed. There was no lights left, everybody had fallen asleep already. Ren had been living with the Freedom Fighters for more than a month now, but he still had trouble sleeping. He felt horribly cold every night, and he could nothing about it.

He got up and went for a walk. Silently, he crossed several bridges, wandering around without any direction. Through the leaves of the maple trees, he could catch glimpses of the night sky. He missed the stars. He missed one specific star more than any other. The star that shined the brightest, that burned the warmest, that he used to be able to reach with his bare hands.

_Where are you?_

A gush of wind passed through the branches, ruffling his long snowy hair.

_... Ren._

He heard his name whispered by the wind, as if the forest was calling him. Calling him back. Did the forest miss him?

_Ren._

No... Somebody else was calling for him. A human. He followed the voice.

The whisper led him to Jet's hut. Once he was close enough, he recognized other sounds. Wet, sloppy skin-on-skin sounds and breathy gasps.

_Oh._

He silently backed off and went back to his own hut, not wanting to embarrass his friend. He would pretend not to know anything the next day, and everything would be okay. He didn't really mind being someone else's fantasy, to be honest. He hadn't felt wanted that way for so long now.

Back in his room, he went back to bed, and removed his clothes under the blanket.

_Maybe this will warm me up._

He slid a hand along his tummy, touching the skin with only the pulp of his fingers. No need to rush. His other hand went to touch his inner thigh, from behind. The skin was so sensitive there, it was definitely his weakest point. He felt the joint between the butt cheek and the thigh with his hand, caressing, lightly scratching with a fingernail, and then grabbed the soft flesh. He had lost weight, and he wasn't as soft as he used to be, but it felt good anyway. The hand in the front had reached down to his pubic hair, sliding almost to the base of his slowly hardening cock, but teasing and dodging it to reach his balls. He cupped them and massaged them, picturing a tongue twirling around them.

He remembered one of his wet dreams. Zuko had long flowy black hair cascading around his shoulders, silky smooth and shiny. He was riding Ren passionately. It was definitely Ren's favorite position. Ren was running his fingers up Zuko's thighs, feeling the shape of the muscles. Zuko was panting hard, a red blush all over his face and his torso. He was pulling himself up and pushing down vigorously, not so fast that his mind was blank already, but not too slow either. Just the perfect pace. His nipples were poking out, swollen after being bitten a little too hard. There was trail of kiss-shaped bruises going from Zuko's shoulder to his ear.

"You don't know how beautiful you are," Ren said. “Do you know how good you make me feel? Do you know how much I want to tell the whole world that I’m yours? And that you’re mine? And that you’re so amazing at making me feel good?"

Zuko moved faster and started moaning Ren’s name with every thrust.

“I wish I could show the world how sexy you are, how incredible your ass feels, how gorgeous you look right now with your dick leaking all over me."

His dick was lewdly slapping Ren’s stomach every time he went down. Gasps and moans resonated in the room, wrapping the two of them together in a soft blanket of love.

“Tell me Zuko, what do you want me to do to you? What do you wish for, when you’re touching yourself?"

Zuko was slowly becoming a full-on mess above him. He had his head pulled back, his throat exposed. Ren sat up and bit into the flesh. He grabbed his ass, taking over the motions. Zuko was panting and moaning unintelligibly, saliva dripping down his chin. He pushed Ren back down and thrusted himself deeper, so deep he felt his entire core melting at once. He did it again, pulling himself almost entirely up and then back down, and screamed. And again, that time back down so hard he climaxed, rolling his eyes, spewing ropes of cum all over Ren’s chest.

Ren came in his hand, grasping the blanket between his knees, wishing he could grab the milky thighs of his prince, wrap him in his arms, cup his soft cheeks with his hands, kiss him senseless.

_I miss you, Zuko. I miss you so much._


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: allusion to sexual assault, brief violence

They were stationed in gingko trees. The Duke had placed signaling bells all over the forest. There was no way to pass through without alerting everyone. Today, there would be blood on the forest bed. Fire Nation blood.

But instead of the signaling bells, they heard a woman's voice calling for help. They moved swiftly through the branches, jumping from tree to tree. Jet used his hook swords to swing through the woods, Ren stabbed the tree barks with sabers to climb back up when the jump was too short. The other Freedom Fighters would catch up with them later. Everything was going according to plan.

"As always, leave no survivors," Jet said before jumping down to the woman's rescue.

There were three Fire Nation soldiers bickering around a woman with red robes on the ground. Ren jumped right on one of them, knocking him down. Jet used his hooks to pull away the others, while Ren slashed the man under him in half. He turned around swiftly, sabers moving in a circle, lacerating above the woman's head. In the span of a few seconds, the three men were dead. The woman lifted her head up. Her hair was completely disheveled and she only had half of her clothes on. Jet walked towards her, his swords ready to kill.

"Jet! She was being assaulted by those guards!"

"I don't care! She's from the Fire Nation! Kill her!"

The woman was shaking, looking at him with watery eyes. Ren inhaled sharply and heavily lifted his saber up, and slashed down.

On the way home, he heard leaves ruffle, but he didn't have the heart to attack another person that day. Fortunately, nobody else noticed. Back at the hideout, they held a feast, celebrating their victorious mission.

Jet raised his glass in Ren's honor. "All of the Fire Nation should burn down! Citizens and soldiers alike! They're all going DOWN!"

Everybody cheered loudly, but Ren stayed silent. Once the excitation had gone down, he heard spidermagpies sing in the trees.

_Remember where you're going._

Ren didn't sleep well that night.

"Jet, I can't stay here anymore," he said the next morning during breakfast.

Jet spurted his cranberry juice out. "What? Why, all of a sudden?"

"I told you, I am looking for someone. And staying here won't help me at all," Ren said, looking somber. "I loved living here. But it's just not the same without him."

"Are you talking about your boyfriend? I hoped you'd forget about him."

"I'm sorry, but it's not possible," Ren sighed, and walked away. He went to the nearest river, bringing buckets to get drinking water for everybody. Jet followed him.

"What's so good about him anyway? Don't you think a girl like you deserves better? Shouldn't he be looking for you too? Why does it only have to go one way?"

Ren didn't say anything. At the riverbank, they bent down and filled up the buckets together, and Jet hooked them on a branch over his shoulders.

"You can't leave," Jet said. "You're our best fighter. Longshot said you even surpass him in archery now."

Ren turned back, facing his friend. "Jet, I have something I've never told you."

A cold wind swept away leaves on the ground and shuffled Ren's long hair. He took a deep breath.

"I'm from the Fire Nation."

Jet dropped all of the buckets down.

"What?!"

"You heard me. I won't repeat myself."

"You're a traitor!"

"Jet. I've never betrayed you."

"You lied to me! You said your parents were killed by Fire Nation soldiers!"

"It's the truth," Ren said, lowering his head. "The people living in the Fire Nation also suffers from the army."

Jet turned around, picked the buckets up and filled them with water once again. He walked back to the hideout without a word. Ren stayed a few meters behind, not knowing what to say.

Back at his hut, he packed the few belongings he had accumulated over his journey. A bowl, a second set of clothes, a black scarf that could be used as a hood, two sabers he had stolen from Fire Nation soldiers, a bow and some arrows Longshot had helped him make, and a hunting knife. He equipped his weapons and wrapped the second set of clothes and the bowl in his blanket, rolled it on itself and tied it to his shoulders. He thought about leaving a note for the other kids, but he had nothing to write with, and he wasn't even sure any of them knew how to read.

He left the tree village discreetly. He now had a good sense of the forest geography, and knew where to go. On his way, he walked by a beautiful waterfall. He had met Jet there, three months ago. The spidermagpies sang again.

_You're not meant to stay._

Anger and melancholy bubbled up in his core. "I know!" Ren yelled. "But I'm allowed to be sad!"

He heard someone panting from above. Jet jumped down right in front of him, completely out of breath.

"Wait!" he said. "Yeah, you're leaving, but you could at least say goodbye!"

He had run as fast as he could once he had noticed Ren had left.

Ren looked down. "Sorry. I thought you wouldn't want to see my face again."

"I never said that." Jet took something out of his pocket. "I know I won't make you change your mind. But I want to make sure you..." _You remember me_ , he wanted to say. "... you remember us."

He held his hand in front of him. Ren reached it and felt something soft and light fall onto his palm.

"I thought it would suit you," Jet said, blushing. "I'll leave you now... Goodbye."

He climbed back up the trees and flew deep into the forest.

Ren opened his hand. He was holding a thin red ribbon made out of silk. He smiled at the sight of the gift.

_Goodbye, my friend._


	18. Chapter 18

Life as refugees was absolute _garbage_. Iroh and Zuko had been traveling across the Earth Kingdom continent for months. Nobody recognized them as they had cut their typical Fire Nation topknots off. Zuko had a full head of black hair now, although still quite short. He took a sip in his bowl, and spat out its content immediately.

"Ugh! I'm sick of eating rotten food, sleeping in the dirt!" He and his uncle were crossing the immense lake that led to Ba Sing Se, on a ferry. "I'm tired of living like this."

"Aren't we all?" Zuko heard a boy say from behind. A tall teenager came out of the shadow. "My name's Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters, Smellerbee and Longshot." He pointed to two other kids, one with a headband, this other with a straw hat and a quiver. They all nodded.

Zuko paused, then finally said "Hello."

"I hear the captain's eating like a king while us refugees have to feed off his scraps. Doesn't seem fair, does it?" Jet asked. "You wanna help us 'liberate" some food?"

Zuko stared at the disgusting food in his bowl. Angry, he threw it far into the lake. "I'm in."

Jet smiled.

At night, Jet, Zuko and Smellerbee snuck onto the upper level of the ferry, into the kitchen. Smellerbee stayed at the door looking for guards. Jet stole all the chicken meat, while Zuko carefully packed dozens of bowls with tofu, rice and vegetables in them.

"Guard's coming," Smellerbee said.

They got out. Longshot stuck an arrow with a rope attached to it into the upper level's safeguard. They used the rope as a slide to quickly go down, not making any sound. Mission complete!

Jet gave out the food to all the refugees, and sat down to eat with his friends next to Zuko and his uncle.

"From what I heard," Jet said, "people eat like this every night in Ba Sing Se. I can't wait to set my eyes on that giant wall."

"It is a magnificent sight," Iroh replied.

"So you've been there before?"

"Once. When I was a... different man," he said, with sorrow in his eyes. He had once launched an attack on Ba Sing Se, leading the Fire Nation army against the Earth Kingdom, and failed to overtake the great city.

"It's okay, we've all done questionable things in our lives," Jet said, completely ignorant of Iroh's past. "Once in Ba Sing Se, it won't matter anymore. It's a new beginning... a second chance."

"Those are noble words you say, young man," Iroh said. "I also believe in second chances," he added, looking at Zuko.

The next morning, Jet joined Zuko at the front of the boat.

"You know, as soon as I saw your scar, I knew exactly who you were," Jet said, startling Zuko.

An ominous feeling nested in the prince's core.

Jet continued "You're an outcast, like me. And us outcasts have to stick together. We have to watch each other's backs... because no one else will." The fog cleared up and showed off the huge outer wall of the great Earth Kingdom capital. "So, you guys got plans once you're inside the city?"

Zuko shook his head.

"You and I have a much better chance of making it in the city if we stick together," Jet said. "You wanna join the Freedom Fighters?"

"Thanks, but I don't think you want me in your gang," Zuko said and looked at the wall.

"Come on, we made a great team looting that captain's food. Think of all the good we could do for these refugees!"

"I said no."

Zuko walked away.

"Well, have it your way then," Jet said, disappointed. The ferry arrived at the port, and the crew let the refugees step off the boat.

_I'm not here to make friends._

While waiting for the train that would get them to the city, Iroh hailed a wandering tea vendor. "It's the best tea in Ba Sing Se!" the vendor promised.

Iroh came back with a cup made out of leaves, so simple it looked lovely. He tasted the tea... and spurted it out. "Ugh! The coldest tea in Ba Sing Se, you mean!" he loudly exclaimed.

Zuko was dozing off against the wall. Iroh discreetly warmed his tea up by blowing on it. "Aaah, finally something drinkable," he said to himself. Steam was coming out of his cup, as it should have been from the very beginning.

From a distance, Jet had been looking at both him and Zuko, thinking about a way of making the teen join his fighters. He watched the entire tea fiasco, and couldn't believe his eyes. They were firebenders!!! He stomped toward them, but the train arrived just as he was about to denounce them to the guards. He went back to his friends, and hopped on the train. On the long ride to the capital city, he told them what he had seen.

"So the old guy had some hot tea," Smellerbee said, "big deal."

"He heated it himself!" Jet exclaimed.

"It doesn't prove he's a firebender. And what if he is, are we supposed to attack them?" Smellerbee sighed. "You said we shouldn't be fighting the Fire Nation indiscriminately anymore. I thought we were starting over here, changing our ways?"

"We are. But these two are not regular Fire Nation citizens, they're firebenders, that's different. What if they decide to burn down the city? Can you imagine how much damage they could cause? When I get the evidence I need, I'll report them to the police and let them handle it, okay?"

Ren may have been from the Fire Nation, but she was not a firebender. She was not a menace to the whole Earth Kingdom. He wouldn't let them roam around freely!

The Freedom Fighters and Jet went their separate ways once they arrived in the outer ring of the city. It was a huge bustling maze of narrow streets and wooden houses. Jet followed Zuko and Iroh from a distance, careful not to draw their attention. They were going from shop to shop looking for a job, and found something in a run down tea shop at the corner of a street. The owner offered them a cup while he went to fetch their uniforms in the back. Iroh took a sip, and spat out immediately.

"This is nothing more than hot leaf juice!"

"Uncle, that's what _all_ tea is."

"How could a member of my own family say something so horrible?!" he said in horror. "We'll have to make some major changes around here." He took the teapot and threw its content away through the window, almost scalding Jet who was spying on them.

Jet waited until the end of their shift, and followed them home. They had found an extremely small apartment not far from their workplace. When Iroh and Zuko both went in the bedroom at together, Jet quickly sneaked into the kitchen through the glassless window and stole something in the kitchen counter.

"Would you like a pot of tea?" Iroh asked Zuko once he walked out of the bedroom.

"We've been working in a teashop all day! I'm sick of tea!"

"Sick of tea? That's like being sick of breathing!" he exclaimed as he looked for something in the drawer. "Have you seen our spark rocks to heat up the water?"

_They're not there. You'll have to firebend, old man._

Iroh left for a moment, and then came back. "I borrowed our neighbor's. Such kind people." He hit the rocks against each other, creating a spark, and lit a small fire under the teapot.

Jet disappeared into the shadow. He spent weeks spying on them, but still couldn't find any evidence. Resolved, he decided to confront them. The shop wasn't in the poor state it used to be anymore. All tables were full, and clients happily chatted about the wonders of tea with Iroh.

Jet barged in. "I'm tired of waiting!" he pointed at Zuko and Iroh. "These two men are firebenders!" he pulled out his hook swords, menacing. "I saw the old man heating his tea!"

Two city guards sitting at a table glanced at each other. "He works in a tea shop!"

"He's a firebender, I'm telling you!"

"Drop your swords, boy, nice and easy."

Jet walked toward Iroh. "You'll have to defend yourself, then everyone will know," he smirked. "Go ahead! Show them what you can do."

Zuko pulled the sabers of one of the guards out. "You want a show? I'll give you a show!" He kicked a table in Jet's direction, forcing him to attack first.

They jumped on another table, hook sword against saber, not breaking eye contact. Jet destroyed the table under Zuko in just a few slashes. Zuko pushed Jet back outside the shop. He attacked, but Jet blocked him.

"You must be tired of using those swords. Why don't you go ahead and firebend at me?"

Their fight turned into a dance, Jet leading, Zuko following.

 _That fighting style, huh!_ Jet thought, _remind me of someone I know._

"Bet you wish your uncle would help you out with a little fireblast right now!" he taunted.

Zuko planted his saber on the ground, locking one of Jet's hook swords down.

"You're the one who needs help!" he slashed the other saber in a large swipe, and Jet bent back just in time to avoid it. He jumped back, climbing on a wooden box. Their fight had gathered a small crowd around the tea shop.

"You see that? The Fire Nation is trying to silence me!" Jet yelled in front of everyone. Police officers were alerted by the noise.

"Drop your weapons," they ordered.

"Arrest them! They're firebenders!" Jet shouted, pointing at Zuko and Iroh.

"This young man wrecked my tea shop and assaulted my employees!" the owner complained.

"It's true sir, we saw the whole thing," the city guards added. "This crazy kid attacked the finest tea maker in the city."

Iroh scoffed and blushed at the compliment.

The officers put rock handcuffs over Jet's wrists, and dragged him away. He was hollering. "You don't understand! They're Fire Nation! You have to believe me!"

Everybody went back to mind their own business. Smellerbee and Longshot walked away into the shadow of the street, disappointed.

_You told us we could take a second chance, Jet. Why did you do this?_


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: the smut starts when Iroh leaves the house

The North Pole. Six months ago.

_Feels like an eternity._

Deep down the lake. _I'm sick of tea._

The flying bison. _Cut off its chains._

The Avatar. _No point catching him anymore._

No coming back home. _What do you want?_

Fingers on his face, drawing shapes.

_Like feathers._

Is it a bird?

...

A monkeyparrot?

No.

A foxdove?

...

A crowbat!

“UNCLE! HAVE YOU FOUND A CROWBAT YET?!!" Zuko shouted as he suddenly woke up.

He opened his eyes, but only saw thin white fingers running away. A soft and familiar voice greeted him.

“You finally woke up."

His eyes were graced by the most beautiful smile he had ever seen.

“Your fever has gone down. Are you feeling better?"

He sat up, and a damp cloth fell down from his forehead. He reached forward, grabbing the elbow of the gorgeous person with long flowy white hair sitting on his bed.

“Is that you? Is that really you, Ren?"

Ren smiled brighter. He wrapped Zuko in his arms.

“Yes, I’m here," he said softly next to Zuko's ear. “I found you."

“It doesn’t feel real." Zuko cupped his face, eyes watering in astonishment.

“I bet it doesn’t. Your uncle told me you’ve been hallucinating for an entire week."

“What happened to me?"

"A metamorphosis," Iroh said, entering the room with tea. "You should know this is not a natural sickness. Your critical decision, setting the Avatar's flying bison free beneath that lake, was in such conflict with your image of yourself that you were at war with your own mind and body."

"And to answer your first question," Ren said with sparkling eyes, "yes, your uncle found a crowbat. I'm here now, and I intend to stay!"

Zuko hugged him tight. Ren helped him get dressed.

“How are you feeling?" he asked while tying up the front buttons of Zuko's robe.

“Great! But hungry," Zuko replied, grinning.

Ren marveled at his smile. He looked so utterly happy, and calm. It felt like he became an entirely new person.

All three of them went to sit at the table and started eating breakfast.

"What's that smell?" Zuko asked.

"It's jook," Iroh said. "I'm sure you wouldn't like it."

"Actually, it smells delicious." Zuko tasted the goopy mixture, and smiled, startling Iroh. "I would like a bowl, Uncle."

Iroh was surprised in a good way, and smiled back. He hadn't seen his nephew this radiant for at least four or five years. Or maybe ever.

"I have some errands to do today."

"Do you need help?" Zuko offered, surprising Iroh even more.

"Don't worry about me," he replied. "I'm sure you two have a lot of things to catch up on."

Ren took Zuko's hand under the table, and Zuko squeezed it back. They ate breakfast while talking about Iroh's upcoming tea shop opening. A lot of things had happened in Ba Sing Se.

Once Iroh had left, Ren pulled Zuko on his lap on the bed.

“You let your hair grow back."

“Yeah, I got even uglier."

Ren put a finger on Zuko’s lips. “You’re always gorgeous, and I forbid you from disagreeing."

“Look at you telling me what to think. You got so bold!"

Ren giggled. “Can’t wait to see you with long silky hair," he said, pulling Zuko into a kiss. “I want to ask you so many things, I don’t even know where to start."

“How about you fuck me first and then we talk?"

Ren laughed. “Sounds like a good plan."

He caressed Zuko's back, feeling the texture of the fabric. Zuko was wearing brown linen robes woven the Earth Kingdom way, and it felt nothing like the Fire Nation silk.

"Got oil?" he asked once his hands had reached Zuko's butt.

“... Who do you think I am? Of course I’ve got oil," Zuko smirked, and went to the other side of the room to fetch a bottle in a cabinet.

Ren raised an eyebrow. “Is that a hint that you’ve spent six months fingering yourself?"

“It is exactly that. Did you expect something else?"

Ren laughed, and reached back to set the pillows comfortably. He had half of his hair tied in a bow behind his head with a red strip of silk.

"I like your hair like that," Zuko said, sitting back on the bed. "I like the ribbon."

"It's a gift from a friend. I'd love you to meet him one day. You'd get along for sure."

"Look at you making _friends_ while I'm away."

Ren giggled.

"You feel like an entirely different person," Zuko added, a wider smile cornering on his lips. He took him in his arms, lying back on the bed, resting Ren's head on his heart.

"Talk about yourself, smiling and joking around!" Ren propped himself up on his elbows, and pinched Zuko's cheeks lightly. Zuko stuck out his tongue playfully. "I could get used to that happy face," Ren added lovingly.

He kissed Zuko's forehead, then his nose, then his mouth. Zuko closed his eyes, leaning into the kiss, mingling his fingers with the soft white hair. He felt hands fiddling with the front of his robes, and lips brushing against his neck, descending, kissing the newly exposed skin of his chest. The hands worked quickly, unfastening every button down to his hips. The lips moved to his nipple, kissing breathily, licking tentatively. Zuko purred in contentment.

“Tell me, Zuko. What do you want me to do?" Ren asked, breath heavy.

Zuko groaned and wiggled his hips against Ren’s hands.

“For real, Zuko." Ren sat up. It pulled Zuko out of his bliss a little. “I want you to tell me. Guessing is fun, but I think you telling me what you want is so much better."

_And I'm dying to know what you'll ask for._

“I told you already," he frowned. “I want you to fuck me."

“But how?"

Zuko sighed and looked away, blushing. “Put your dick inside my ass and thrust back and forth until you come, that’s how."

“Wow," Ren squinted. "That’s the least sexy way anyone could describe it."

“What did you expect? Poetry?"

Ren snorted. “What about slow lovemaking while I tell you how much I missed you and how incredibly hot your insides feel?"

Zuko made an ' _o_ ' shape with his mouth, definitely intrigued.

Ren’s hands went back to work. “I could tell you all about the wet dreams I’ve had while we were apart... You weren’t there to hear them, I’m sure you missed them a lot." Ren nibbled at the pink button of skin on his chest. He alternated between sucking and licking, grating his teeth around the cute nipple but not quite biting. The tip of his tongue insisted on the tiny knob of flesh until it was fully erect. “Would you like that?"

“Mmph" was the only sound that came out of Zuko’s mouth. He was biting his bottom lip, a rock hard dick tenting his pants. Ren pulled them down gently.

“I recall you never answered my question when I asked during our first time. Did you touch yourself next to me? Before you and I got together?" His hand was hovering over Zuko’s hard-on, but he pulled away when Zuko pushed his hips forward to meet his palm.

“You tease!" Zuko complained.

“Answer me Zuko, and I will fuck you so good you’re gonna cry your eyeballs out."

Zuko blushed so hard even his shoulders became pink. “... I did," he finally confessed, whispering so softly Ren had to read on his lips.

_That will be food for another ten thousand years of wet dreams!_

Ren let all of his body weight down on Zuko, finally giving his erection some contact. Zuko whimpered at the touch. Ren stroked his dick slowly while his other hand went to grab the bottle of oil set on the side. Zuko spread his legs apart, showing off not so subtly where he wanted Ren to go. Ren circled a finger around his entrance.

“Come on Ren... Go in!" Zuko complained again.

“Tell me what to do."

“I’m telling you what to do!"

Ren gently grabbed him by the back of his hair. _So nice I can do that now!_

He whispered against his neck. “Tell me what to do because it turns me _on_ and I’ve been so starved of you for so long, _Zuko_." 

His eyes met Zuko's. There were hunger and love and lust in them. He pushed a finger in, and Zuko inhaled sharply. Their hips were rubbing against each other, accompanying his hand movement. Zuko pulled Ren's kimono off his shoulders, and tugged at the belt, but it wouldn't untie itself. He gave up and wrapped Ren's chest in his arms, feeling the skin with his palms, the ribs, the back muscles.

"You've lost weight," he noticed.

"It's not that bad."

Ren kissed him, putting another finger in. Zuko's breath became heavier, and his kisses sloppier. His lovely warm hands kept pulling Ren closer and closer until his wrist was in an awkward position, but it didn't matter. Ren wanted to drown himself in Zuko, to melt inside of him. He put a third finger in.

Zuko pushed his head back, his throat exposed, panting hard. Ren hungrily sucked the pale skin, leaving a bright red mark. He pulled back and admired his artwork, licking his lips. Zuko squinted his eyes.

"What did you- Aaah!"

Ren bent his fingers right as he was about to talk, and hit his prostate.

"Oh? Right there?"

He did it again, and Zuko moaned loudly. Sweat was already pearling on his forehead.

"If you don't stop right now I'm gonna come before you're inside me!" Zuko warned between moans.

Ren stretched him wider. "Have you come untouched like that before? Just using your fingers?"

Zuko sealed his lips, turning his head to the side.

"Is that a yes?" Ren cupped his cheek, pulling his head back to face him.

Zuko met the most tender eyes he had ever seen.

"Talk to me, my love," Ren whispered, his forehead resting against Zuko's.

"... Once," the prince finally admitted.

Ren kissed him. He knew he was asking a lot from Zuko. He had never been the talkative kind when it came to expressing his wants, wether it'd be sexual or anything else. The few times Zuko had asked for something specific, they were both in a very different state of mind, and life was easier. But Zuko had spent six months reconsidering the entire person he was and having every hope he ever had completely crushed, and Ren had just spent six months touch-starved and with only his own dreams to keep him company, and it had made him realize how little he knew of what Zuko really wanted.

"Ren... Take off your clothes..." Zuko whined softly.

Ren pulled out his fingers, and untied his belt, throwing both his kimono and his inner robe on the ground.

 _What do you want?_ Ren asked silently.

 _What do I want?_ Zuko finally asked himself.

"I... I want you... inside of me, in this position," Zuko tentatively said. Ren lubed himself up and kneeled back between Zuko's legs. He made sure Zuko knew he was listening with his entire body and soul. "I want you to fuck me," Zuko felt safe enough to add, "... Hard."

Both of them were blushing so, so much. That was the plan all along, but it felt so different now that Zuko asked for it like _that_. "I want you to melt in me," he continued talking. "I felt so empty without you, I want to feel full again."

Ren's head was spinning from his words. He pushed his dick inside, slowly.

Zuko gasped. "I wanted to see you," he said, tears pearling in the corner of his eyes. "I wanted to see you so much."

He pulled Ren against him. Ren kissed all over his face, and once he had pushed inside to the hilt, he swept away the tears on Zuko's cheeks with his hands.

"That's not exactly what I had pictured when I said I'd make you cry," he joked, but deep down he was fighting against his own feelings. Zuko sobbed and laughed at the same time. Six months of bottled up loneliness were spilling out of both of them.

"Fuck you hard, you said?" Ren hid his emotions behind a smirk.

"Go slow first or you're gonna rip me open," Zuko smirked back, eyes still watery.

Ren started thrusting, slow and loving. Zuko's heart was beating like thunder against Ren's chest, and soft whimpers were coming out of his mouth with each thrust. He locked his legs behind Ren's hips, and pushed himself into the motion, still keeping a slow pace.

Ren whispered words of love and yearning against his neck, gradually melting every bone of Zuko's body into honey, until Zuko finally asked to go faster.

Ren grabbed him behind the knees and spread his legs a little more. He moaned with each of his thrusts, not afraid to be loud. He wanted Zuko to know how much he had missed him too. Words couldn't form on his lips anymore, but he hoped he could show Zuko, he hoped he would make him see stars like he himself would when he was alone, thinking about him.

Zuko had reached down with his hand, pumping himself fast and sloppy. Ren put his hand over his, and pumped at the same pace as his hip thrusts.

"Aah, Ren!"

Zuko spilled all over his own stomach, eyelashes full of tears. Ren thrusted faster and came in a low grunt a few moments later. He lay on his back next to Zuko, trying to catch his breath again. Zuko grabbed a towel and cleaned himself up. Ren spooned him on the bed, stroking his hair mindlessly.

"So what's up with that flying bison beneath the lake?" he asked.

"The Earth King has a hideout beneath Lake Laogai, where he imprisoned the Avatar's bison. I set it free."

“You really set the bison free?!" Ren sat up in shock.

“Yes," Zuko said. "The hunt for the Avatar is over. I'm not chasing him anymore."


	20. Chapter 20

While they were away from each other, Zuko had had to face so many hardships he had never even imagined.

What could be worst than having your face burnt off by your own father?

Having your psychopath of a sister actively try to kill you, that's the answer.

She had been sent by the Fire Lord to capture the Avatar herself, after the total fiasco that had happened in the North Pole, where Zhao's entire fleet had been destroyed by the ocean spirit. She was supposed to bring Zuko back in the Fire Nation, so that his existence would stop embarrassing his father. He probably would have been thrown in a dungeon to rot. She lured him onto her ship with the promise of their father's forgiveness, but Zuko knew better.

_Azula always lies._

Iroh and Zuko fled to Ba Sing Se, hoping that they would be safe behind the many walls of the only place the Fire Nation had never managed to conquer. They had been living there for more than a month now, and life was good. Iroh was incredibly successful in his tea venture, and although Zuko thought for a while that Ba Sing Se stank, he had to admit the people living there were quite friendly.

A few weeks after his arrival, he had found posters of a strange animal with horns and an arrow on his head. Even with such a terrible drawing, Zuko could obviously tell this was supposed to be the Avatar's flying bison. So the Avatar was in Ba Sing Se too? And his bison was missing?

Zuko couldn't suppress his yearning of regaining his honor. Maybe it was a sign? Maybe it was a last chance to go back home? He tracked down the animal and found that it was detained by the Earth Kingdom police under Lake Laogai, not far from the capital city. He sneaked inside, but once in front of the beast, he didn't have a plan.

"I was in front of that bison, and I had no idea what to do or where to go with it. I think it was probably the stupidest idea I've ever had."

 _Wow, first time I see you admit something like that_ , Ren thought.

"Uncle Iroh convinced me to let it go. I broke off its chains, and it flew out. It's not like capturing the Avatar matters anymore anyway... But deep down I had that hope, the hope that maybe I could still prove to Azula and to my father that I'm capable of great things."

"You consider capturing the Avatar a great thing?" Ren asked in earnest.

Zuko didn't expect this question at all. "I..."

Iroh opened the door. "I'm back! Hope you had the chance to talk, because I need help for the cooking today!"

Zuko quickly finished to button up his front robe he had left hanging. "Yeah, we did. What's the menu for today?"

"I met this great cabbage merchant, and he gave me a discount! Let's make some kimchi!"

Ren and Zuko smiled at each other. Ren tied his long sleeves behind his back with a string, and got to work. He didn't really like to cook, but he was skilled and he liked to help. He had just arrived the previous evening, and he and Iroh hadn't yet had the chance to talk. Iroh told him he could stay at their house for as long as he wanted.

"I'll try to find a job," Ren said. "I don't want to be a burden anymore. You have fed me for three whole years already and I don't deserve any more kindness from you."

"Then what about getting a job in my brand new tea shop? I could use a hand, and I know you already make great tea!"

"Lord Iroh!"

"I am no lord anymore, young man. Call me 'uncle'!" Iroh smiled.

Ren turned as red as the pepper paste he was holding. "U-U-Uncle Iroh!" he stuttered.

"I'll need your expert advice on the apron's design, I'm not good with fashion."

"S-Sure..."

***

A mere days after the opening, the Jasmine Dragon was already bustling. People came from all over the city to taste the finest tea in Ba Sing Se. Iroh's reputation had carried on from the old tea shop in the outer ring. One evening, after a long and tiresome day, a message came in.

"... I can't believe it!" Iroh rejoiced.

"What is it, Uncle?" Zuko asked.

"Great news! We've been invited to serve tea... to the Earth King!"

The next day, Iroh, Zuko and Ren put on their fanciest clothes and headed to the royal palace. Iroh was wearing traditional green garments, Zuko a brown robe with golden details and Ren a finely woven dark grey kimono. He had tied his hair in a tight braid with a red silk ribbon. The braid was so long it reached his thighs.

They were led to a luxurious tea room with a gorgeous paper screen where a bear was Masterfully painted. The throne was empty. They prepared tea with their utmost concentration and then waited in silence.

After a while, Zuko wondered "What's taking so long?"

"Maybe the Earth King overslept," Iroh suggested.

A dozen officers in black clothing stepped into the room, standing in circle around them.

_Something is not right._

"It's tea time!" A feminine voice came in.

Everybody stood up. "Azula!" Zuko shouted.

"Have you met the Dai Li? They're earthbenders, but they have a killer instinct that is _so_ firebender, I just love it!"

Zuko glanced at Ren, eyes full of worry.

Iroh took a sip of tea. "Did I ever tell you how I got the nickname 'The Dragon of the West'?"

"I'm not interested in a lengthy anecdote, Uncle," she replied.

"It's more of a demonstration, really," Iroh said as he delicately put down the tea cup.

Zuko smirked, and pushed Ren behind his uncle with him.

Iroh opened his mouth, and a giant flame bursted out of him, like a dragon spitting fire. All three of them ran away through the paper screen, taking their only chance. They reached the end of the corridor. The Dai Li were chasing them while throwing rocks at them, destroying the walls. Ren and Iroh jumped through the wall, landing in bushes. It was a six meters fall.

"Come on, you'll be fine!" Iroh said to Zuko after landing. But Zuko wasn't coming.

"No. I'm tired of running. It's time I faced Azula!"

Ren frowned, and jumped against the wall. He climbed back inside in two high jumps. He didn't really know what Azula was like, but he had a really, really bad feeling in his stomach.

"You're so dramatic," Azula said calmly when she saw her brother coming back. "What, are you going to challenge me to an Agni Kai?"

"Yes!" Zuko said, "I challenge you!"

"No thanks!" she replied with a playful voice. "Who's that lovely friend you've got with you? Don't tell me... You've found yourself a _girlfriend_?"

Zuko launched a fireblast in his sister's direction, but the Dai Li blocked it with a stone wall. They threw hands made out of rocks at both Ren and the Fire Nation prince, locking them down to the ground. Those hands were small, but it was impossible to get out of them. The Dai Li dragged and threw the two boys into a crystal cave, and closed the hole behind. But they weren't alone.

"Zuko!" A teenage girl with blue clothes frowned when she recognized him.

Ren looked at her. She had eyes as blue as the ocean, and a pretty intricate hairstyle.

"Why did they throw you in here?!" she asked. "And who are you?" she put a finger right in front of Ren's nose.

"... Hi?"

_Oh Agni I hate introductions._

"Oh wait, let me guess," she pointed at Zuko. "It's a trap! So that when Aang shows up to help me, you can finally have him in your little Fire Nation clutches!" she made claw shapes with her hands.

Zuko glanced at her, and looked away. Ren was so, so confused.

"You're a terrible person, you know that?" she said to Zuko. "Always following us, hunting the Avatar, trying to capture the world's last hope for peace!" she monologued. "But what do you care? You're the Fire Lord's son. Spreading war and violence and hatred is in your _blood_."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Zuko said back.

"I don't? How dare you?" she shouted. "You have no idea what this war has put me through! Me, personally," she pointed at herself. "The Fire Nation took my mother away from me!"

She started crying. Ren's heart stung. Zuko turned around and faced her.

"... I'm sorry," he said, and it was sincere.

"That's something the three of us have in common," Ren said.

Katara looked up to them both. There was no anger in her eyes anymore. She took the time to breathe slowly and wipe her tears.

"So," she looked at Ren, and asked with a soft voice "who are you? I know who Zuko is, but I've never seen your face before."

"Yes, you haven't. I'm Ren, Zuko's bo... bo-bodyguard," Ren stuttered.

Katara looked very confused.

"But as you can see I'm not very good at my job," he added, and then blushed after he realized it sounded like a joke.

"I'm Katara, the Avatar's bodyguard, sort of," she smiled. "... I'm sorry I yelled at you both," she finally said.

Ren smiled back at her.

"It doesn't matter," Zuko said.

"It's just that, for so long now, whenever I would imagine the face of the enemy, it was Zuko's face."

_Ah, yes, my face._

He touched his scar.

"No, no!" Katara panicked. "That's not what I meant!"

"It's okay," Zuko said. "I used to think this scar marked me, the mark of the banished prince cursed to chase the Avatar forever. But lately, I've realized I'm free to determine my own destiny... even if I'll never be free of my mark."

A few seconds of silence passed.

"Maybe you could be free of it," Katara said. "I have healing abilities."

Zuko shook his head. "It's a scar. It can't be healed."

Katara pulled something out of her pouch. It was a thin vial the size of a finger. Ren opened his eyes wide in surprise. He used to have a very similar vial in his possession, until the ship explosion happened.

"This is water from the spirit oasis at the North Pole," Katara said. "It has special properties, so I've been saving it for something important."

She approached Zuko. "I don't know if it would work but..." She put her hand over Zuko's scar.

A rumble came from the cave walls, and then a loud boom and a cloud of dust.

"Aang!" Katara shouted. She hugged him. Iroh was with him, and hugged Zuko and Ren.

"Uncle!" Zuko said. "I don't understand, what are you doing with the Avatar?"

"Saving you, that's what," Aang replied coldly. Zuko growled, but Iroh stopped him.

"Zuko. It's time we talked."

Aang and Katara left quickly.

"Why, Uncle?"

"You're not the man you used to be, Zuko. You are stronger and wiser and freer than you have _ever_ been. And now you have come to the crossroads of your destiny. It's time for you to choose," he said. "It's time for you to choose _good_."

A row of crystals sprang up from the ground. Ren jumped up just in time, but it trapped Iroh down. Flying rock hands grabbed Ren by the braid and pinned him to the cavern wall.

"Ouch!" he shouted in pain. He wiggled around until his feet found the smallest ledge to balance himself on. He really thought his scalp was going to tear off.

_Why didn't I bring a knife?!!_

"I expected this kind of treachery from Uncle," Azula slid to the bottom of the cavern with two Dai Li agents. "But Zuko, _Prince_ Zuko... You're a lot of things, but you're not a traitor, are you?"

"Release them immediately."

"It's not too late for you Zuko. You can still redeem yourself," she said. "I _need_ you, Zuko. I've plotted every move of this day, this glorious day in Fire Nation history, and the only way we win is together. We will take Ba Sing Se _today_!"

_Don't listen to her!_

"At the end of this day, you will have your honor back!"

_Zuko please, stop listening to her!_

"You will have Father's love!"

_Azula always lies! You said it yourself!_

"You will have everything you want!"

"Zuko, I'm begging you!" Iroh implored. "Look into your heart, and see what it is that you truly want!"

Azula sighed. "You're free to choose," she said to her brother, and ran away following the Avatar's footsteps.

Ren was in so much pain, and so scared, that he couldn't talk at all.

Zuko was turning his back from him and Iroh, his head down. He took a deep breath, and without looking at them, he followed Azula. Ren's stomach sank.

After a moment trying to regain his composure, Ren asked Iroh "can you close your eyes really hard, just for a second?"

Iroh nodded. Ren raised his hand above his head, and in an extremely fast motion, cut his braid off with the side of his palm. When Iroh opened his eyes again, the crystals had been lacerated and crumbled to pieces. Ren and Iroh looked at each other and silently agreed that both Azula and Zuko needed to be stopped.

When they arrived, the Avatar's eyes and tattoos were glowing blue. Azula, somehow, managed to shoot a lightning bolt at him, right in the chest.

_How did she do that?_

Katara caught the Avatar in his fall, and Iroh jumped in front of her. "I'll hold them off as long as I can," he told her before shooting firebolts at the Dai Li agents spread everywhere across the room. Katara waterbended her way through a waterfall to climb up from the cave to the surface, carrying the Avatar in her arms.

"Zuko!" Ren shouted. Zuko couldn't look at him. "Is that what you've chosen?"

"... Yes. I chose my family," he said, still looking away.

There was a silence that felt like an eternity.

"Zuko." Ren took a deep breath. "I'll be there when you realize _who_ your real family is. Who truly _loves_ you." He dodged Azula's firebolt.

"Ren, go!" Iroh shouted.

Ren jumped from rock to rock until he reached the waterfall, and quickly climbed against the wet stone.

 _I never deserved you_ , Zuko thought.


	21. Chapter 21

"What do we do now, Sokka?"

While he and Toph were rescuing the Earth King, Aang and Katara got in a fight with Azula. Aang took a lightning to the heart, and Katara managed to save him, but barely. Now Aang was unconscious. Katara used her spirit water to heal his wound, and he had awoken for just a few seconds before falling back asleep. They had to find somewhere to hide. Somewhere where the crazy Fire Nation princess wouldn't notice them. _Somewhere unexpected._

They flew to Chameleon Bay, where Sokka and Katara's father was stationed with his men. They had been trapping Fire Nation ships in the narrow stone canal leading to the inner continent for several days now.

"I think I have an idea."

***

So yeah, stealing a Fire Nation battleship was definitely an idea that wouldn't last. But at least, they got through the Fire Nation border! What better hiding spot than the Fire Nation itself? No one would expect that! Plus, the entire world thought the Avatar was dead so, they were pretty safe.

Aang didn't take it very well though. He was convinced he had failed in Ba Sing Se, and that it was his duty to save the world alone. He ran away as soon as he woke up, but he was still wounded and didn't go very far. Sokka, Katara and Toph searched for him during the entire night, and found him the next morning washed ashore on a beach near a volcano.

"You guys were right," Aang said. "I can't do it alone."

"And that's fine," Katara said. "We're in this together."

"What about your father?"

"There's an eclipse coming in two months," Sokka said. "The firebenders need the sun to bend, they will be totally out of fuel that day. We've developed an extremely detailed plan for an invasion with Dad. We'll just follow through with it and meet him there."

They flew from island to island, hiding their bison inside a cloud Aang waterbended around him. They stole Fire Nation garments and Aang found a headband to cover the arrow on his forehead. He had been unconscious for weeks, and his hair had grown out. Now that he had both hair and a headband, nothing could differentiate him from any other kid.

"Those are pretty nice shoes," Toph said pointing at her own feet, "but I can't see anything with them on."

She gripped one shoe tightly and pushed her leg down with all her strength. The shoe sole flew out, landing right in Sokka's face. She repeated the same thing with the other shoe.

"Aah, far better! I think I like them even more now! Maybe I could make some money out of that, selling shoes for the blind!"

Sokka wasn't really convinced.

Life in the Fire Nation wasn't as horrible as they had expected it to be. They even made friends! Through a series of surprising events, Aang even had the opportunity to go to a Fire Nation school for a few days, and got the chance to hold a dance party before getting expelled. Kids were just kids, even in the Fire Nation.

_And we are just a bunch of kids too. And yet the world's fate is in our hands._

One night, a meteor shower fell all over the night sky. Sokka, Toph, Aang and Katara lay down on the grass to watch it comfortably.

"Wow, this is amazing!" Katara said. "I've never seen anything so pretty!"

"It kinda makes you realize how insignificant you are," Sokka said.

"Meh. You've seen it once, you've seen it a thousand times," Toph said sarcastically and rolled on the side.

"Oh man!" Sokka shouted. "You've never _not_ _seen_ anything like this!"

A giant flaming rock flew down the sky. It landed in a large crash a few kilometers away.

"What was that noise?!" Toph asked.

"A meteorite!!!"

On a hill on the other side of the valley, a teenager with short white hair twisted and turned in his bed, having a nightmare. He woke up the next morning, and felt relieved once he saw the rising sun picking through the mountains. _Phew, it hasn't fallen down the sky._

He put his headscarf and his pants on and went to the balcony to pray.

 _"Ask for forgiveness, wish for something good, pray for the Fire Lord, you should already know that!"_ A young boy's voice resonated in his heart.

_Zuko, I am sorry I couldn't show you how much you were loved. I am sorry I didn't realize how much you missed your home. I... I'm so sorry._

He got up and went to put on a kimono.

Around lunch time, someone knocked really hard on the front door. While Ren was walking towards the door to welcome them, they got impatient and knocked a dozen times more.

"... Yes?" Ren opened just a little, startling the teenage boy with brown skin, eyes as blue as the ocean and a short ponytail that was previously knocking like a mad person.

"Ahem, hello! Is this Master Piandao's residence?"

"It is. Do you wish to meet him?"

"Yes! I'd like to be instructed in the way of the sword!"

Every week there would be young boys coming in, and every week Master Piandao would receive them, serve them some good tea and turn them down.

Ren opened the door properly and bowed down. "Come on in, young Master."

Master Piandao was sitting facing the window. Ren poured tea and kneeled down at the back of the room.

"Master, my name is Sokka, and I wish to be instructed in the way of the sword."

"Sokka. That's an unusual name."

"Oh ! Uh... Really?" Sokka blushed. "Uh, where I come from, the Fire Nation colonies, it's a pretty normal name for, uh, Fire Nation colonials." He was waving his hands in circles.

"Let me guess," Piandao said calmly, "you've come hundreds of kilometers from your little village, where you're the best swordsman in town, and you think you deserve to learn from the Master."

"Well, actually, I've been all over the world..."

"Yep, here we go."

"... And I know one thing for sure," Sokka kneeled down. "I have a lot to learn."

Piandao turned around. "You're not doing a very good job of selling yourself."

"... I know."

"What do you think makes you worthy of being my student?"

Sokka looked down. "... To be honest, I'm not sure."

Ren listened in silence. His eyes opened wide when he saw Piandao stand up.

"Well then, young Sokka. Let's find out together how worthy you are. I _will_ train you!"

He took Sokka on a training session for the whole afternoon. Ren was watching from afar while mending a curtain that Piandao's lizardcat had climbed on. Sokka was definitely something else. When Master Piandao told him to see the sword as like an extension of himself, he replied "like a second head!", to which Piandao said "... more like a longer arm, really."

 _That guy is funny_ , Ren thought.

After dinner, Piandao and Sokka practiced calligraphy in the library. Ren was reading an astronomy book. Piandao asked Sokka to write his name in a way that represented his identity.

"Remember, a stroke of the brush is like a stroke of the sword. It cannot be undone."

Sokka's hand shivered. He lifted the brush off the paper.

"You said I have to represent my identity, right?"

Piandao nodded. Sokka then slathered ink all over his face, and mashed himself onto the paper, rolling down thoroughly to get as much coverage as possible. He lifted his artwork off the table and showed it proudly. It looked like the fancy charcoal face masks perfume merchants would sell at the market. Ren giggled, covering his smile with his hand.

Sokka looked at him, and smiled brightly. Once the calligraphy lesson was over, Piandao said goodnight and walked away. Sokka thought that maybe he could find some interesting stuff in the library, and stayed behind with Ren.

"So," he started chatting, "what's your name?"

"I'm Ren."

"Nice to meet you Ren, I'm Sokka!" He reached forward to pull out a very big book. It had a hand imprint on the back cover.

"What are you looking for?" Ren asked.

"Uuuh, maps! I like maps! Geography is great! I want to look at maps!"

"Then it's the orange bookmark."

Sokka blinked twice. "You-... Uh, okay!" His voice cracked.

He sat next to Ren, his back very straight. Time passed, clock ticking quietly, and a strange tension in the air simmered. He browsed through the pages first before getting to the orange bookmark. His eyes sparkled. So much great information about the Fire Nation! It would definitely be useful for the invasion!

"It's a fantastic book," Ren said softly.

Sokka lifted his head up. Ren was smiling at him.

"... Did you put in all of those bookmarks yourself?"

"I did. It's my favorite book." Ren closed the book, front facing down. "See the back of the cover? It's my hand." The imprint was much smaller than his hand though, and it was easy to guess that it had been made a long time ago.

"Oh, so we got the same idea!" Sokka beamed. “Writing one's name is overrated, right?"

Ren chuckled.

 _He's cute!_ Sokka thought.

They chatted until late at night. The next day went as smoothly, except when Sokka found out how early all of the Fire Nation people got up. Ren lured him out of bed with the smell of delicious pancakes. At night, they went back to the library. Sokka took out the encyclopedia again, but when he turned around he knocked his knee against the low table and squealed in pain, dropping the book. Ren caught it before it fell on the ground.

A piece of paper flew out of the pages. It was a child's drawing of some kind of... sea monster? With a shell and a beak? Ren took it in his hand. His heart shattered to pieces once he recognized the terrible drawing of a turtleduck he had contributed to years ago.

"Are you okay?" Sokka asked.

A flood of tears dripped down Ren's cheeks.

Sokka panicked. "Wait! Ah! Here! Take my handkerchief! Your nose is running!"

"Sorry..." Ren sobbed, and took the piece of cloth.

"I'm a good listener, if you need someone to talk to. What's on your mind?"

They both sat down. The stream of tears slowly dried down. Ren took a deep breath.

"... I got dumped," he said. "It's been a few weeks, and I still feel miserable."

"It's okay, take your time. You can't force yourself to get better faster."

Sokka rested his head on his hands.

"So what kind of person were they? Maybe that'll help you if you talk badly about them."

"Badly? I don't have many bad things to say about him."

Sokka didn't even flinch at the pronoun. Ren realized it had just slipped past his lips. It could have been dangerous, but somehow, Ren had felt that he was safe to be himself in Sokka’s presence.

"Come on, I'm sure he had a bad temper or some annoying habits. Be imaginative!"

"... Well, he was kind of like a volcano sometimes. He would explode in rage, but it never was against me. He even made a conscious effort to refrain his anger when I was annoying him."

"Ren, you’re finding good in him! Stop that. Find something bad, something terrible!"

"I don't think it would help me."

"I think it would make you feel better if you got reaaaally mad at him and you punched a tree thinking about his face. That's what he deserves for dumping you anyway."

"I can't be mad. He's been through so much, I can't blame him."

Sokka rubbed his chin, thinking. _Okay so, can't blame him, can't punch him..._

"You know what I would do? Next time I'd see him, I would embarrass him so much he would regret everything."

"I don't know if there will ever be a next time."

"Do you want one?"

"I do. I want it so much."

Sokka smiled. "Then it's gonna happen. You'll make it happen."


	22. Chapter 22

Sokka stayed training at Master Piandao's for three weeks. He even got the chance to forge a sword made out of meteorite ore. It was the coolest sword one would ever see, with a black sparkling blade. On his last day, when Master Piandao gifted him the finished sword, Sokka kneeled down and apologized.

"I'm sorry Master. I'm not worthy of this sword."

Piandao and Ren opened their eyes wide in surprise.

"I lied to you," Sokka said. "I'm not who you think I am. I'm not from the Fire Nation, I'm from the Southern Water Tribe. I lied so that I could learn swordsmanship from you." He reached to give back the sword. "I'm sorry."

Piandao turned away. "I'm sorry too." He pulled out his sword and struck in Sokka's direction. Sokka blocked him in time, but barely. Ren sprang up behind Sokka, not sure of what to do.

"No." Sokka stopped him with a wave of the hand. "This is my fight. Alone."

Master Piandao and Sokka went to the garden and bowed down to each other. It was the first time Ren had the chance to watch a proper sword duel that wasn't a training session.

Sokka had definitely gotten better, but he obviously couldn't rival the Master in skill. He got pushed back, almost falling into the koi fish pond. He found his balance back just in time. Piandao pushed forward. Sokka did a flip on the side and ran away through the bamboo forest. He cut down as many bamboos as he could to try to slow Piandao down.

 _My poor bamboos!_ Ren internally screamed.

Sokka grabbed a bamboo and pulled it forward as he ran, releasing it like a whip right as Piandao caught up with him.

"Good use of terrain!" Piandao complimented.

He was much older than Sokka and far less agile. Sokka couldn't really do anything attack wise, but the fight had already lasted for far longer than Ren expected, with Sokka cleverly dodging almost everything.

He ran around the bamboo forest and went back in front of the house. Unfortunately, Piandao had cut him short by going the other way around. They faced each other. Piandao struck forward. Sokka lunged down and dodged. He noticed the ground was very dusty and every footstep created a cloud of dirt. He flipped around on one foot, swiping his blade in the sand, throwing dust in Piandao's eyes.

"Very resourceful," Piandao said, squinting. He gave up trying to see and closed his eyes. He stayed still and listened carefully. He heard someone's step on a branch to his right. He struck down, and disarmed Sokka, making him fall down.

"Excellent work, Sokka," he said, putting back his sword in its sheath.

Sokka was dumbfounded. "You're not going to kill me?"

"Of course I'm not. I knew from the beginning that you were Water Tribe. You might want to think of a better Fire Nation cover name."

"... But why would you agree to train someone from the Water Tribe?"

"The way of the sword doesn't belong to any one nation. Knowledge of the arts belongs to us all."

He went to pick up the black sword and gave it back to the boy. "Sokka, you must continue your training on your own. If you stay on this path, I know that one day you'll become an even greater Master than I am."

Sokka's heart filled with pride. Back in the house, he went to the guest room to pack up his belongings.

"That's was a great fight!" Ren said.

Sokka beamed with joy. "Yeah, that really was something! I can't believe I survived!"

Ren chuckled. "I'm gonna miss you, Sokka."

Sokka's heart melted. "I'm gonna miss you too, buddy. I'm glad I got to meet you." He finished packing.

Just before he left the front door of the house, Ren gave him a small silk bag with a tile of Pai Sho inside. It was the tile of the lotus.

"It's for good luck," Ren said, and waved goodbye.

"Good luck to you too," Sokka said, and walked away.

***

Sokka and his friends continued their journey through the Fire Nation islands. Toph trained Aang in earthbending, and Katara trained him in waterbending. He was making great progress, but he still had firebending to learn and no Master.

They met an old lady who taught Katara how to bend blood as if it were water. It was kind of scary though, and the lady wasn't as nice as they thought she would be. Definitely not a friend.

Another one that wasn't a friend was that giant guy with the eye tattoo on his forehead. He could shoot laser beams! How was that even humanly possible? It made no sense.

The day of the invasion finally came. The 'Gaang' - you know, 'Aang' plus 'gang' - met with Sokka and Katara's father's troops in a creek surrounded by high cliffs. Their dad had spent the past few months searching around the world to gather all the allies they could find: swampbenders they had met in the Earth Kingdom, young earthbenders that they helped break free from a Fire Nation prison, and the Freedom Fighters minus Jet who apparently had had both of his legs broken.

They launched the invasion during the afternoon. The eclipse would last only eight minutes, so they had to get to the Fire palace before it started. Unfortunately, once they reached the palace, Sokka, Aang and Toph found Azula waiting for them. She couldn't firebend, but she could still talk.

"So you're alive after all," she said when she saw Aang barge in. "I had a hunch that you survived. But it doesn't matter. I've known about the invasion for months!"

"Where's the Fire Lord?" Aang growled.

"Hmm, you mean I'm not good enough for you? You're hurting my feelings."

"Stop wasting our time and give us the information!" Sokka shouted.

Azula ran away, dodging everything Aang and Toph threw at her. She made them run in circles all over the palace. After a while, Sokka understood what she was doing.

"Wait! Stop attacking!" Aang and Toph stopped in their tracks. "Don't you see what she's doing? She's just playing with us. She's not even trying to win this fight!"

"Not true, I'm giving it my all," Azula said sarcastically.

"You're trying to keep us here and waste all our time!" Toph shouted.

"Um, right, I think your friend just said that, Blindy. And as you can't see, I should tell you: I'm rolling my eyes!"

"I'll roll your whole HEAD!"

Sokka grabbed Toph's shoulder. "She's just baiting you again."

"O-okay, so what do we do, we just ignore her?"

"We don't have a choice. We just have to get out of here and find the Fire Lord on our own somehow."

They walked away. Azula didn't move.

"So," she said. "Sokka's your name, right? My favorite prisoner used to mention you all the time. That girl with the lovely make-up."

Sokka turned around.

"She was convinced you were going to rescue her," Azula continued. "Of course, you never came, and she gave up on you."

He threw himself at the princess, screaming.

"WHERE IS SUKI?"

***

The invasion plan had failed. Azula had succeeded wasting all their time, and they had had to retreat. Sokka and Katara's dad and his troops were made prisoners. The Gaang managed to flee just in time. Their flying bison carried them to the Western Air temple. The temple was built upside down under a giant cliff. It was an incredible piece of architecture, completely hidden from the outer world by both the rocks and a constant fog. They set camp there.

Early in the morning the next day, they held a 'formal meeting' - as Sokka called it - to decide of a new plan.

"So, what is it?" Aang asked, quite grumpy.

"Well, if you ask me, the new plan is... the old plan!" Sokka said. "You just need to Master all four elements and confront the Fire Lord before that comet that will make the firebenders invincible comes! You still have a month!"

"Oh, yeah, that's great!" Aang said sarcastically. "No problem, I'll just do that! Easy enough!"

"Aang, no one said it's gonna be easy," Katara said.

"Well it's not even gonna be possible! Where am I supposed to get a firebending teacher?"

They knew nobody who could fit the role.

"Someone's coming!" Toph sensed with her feet.

A black silhouette appeared from behind the cliff.

"Quick! Everybody, hide!"

The silhouette walked through the temple, and stopped in its tracks right in front of their hiding spot. It was a human of rather small frame, face and body hidden under several layers of black clothing. Only their eyes were visible, and they were sparkling like stars.

"Excuse me, have you seen Zuko around here?" they asked with a light and soft voice, obviously knowing that the teens were hiding behind that pillar.

"Zuko?!" Sokka's head popped out. "Don't tell me Zuko is here?!"

"Who are you???" Katara came out, water ready to be used as a whip. Aang and Toph stopped hiding too.

The silhouette removed their hood and the scarf in front of their mouth, revealing the face of a beautiful teenager with short white hair and a bright smile.

"I'm Zuko's _boyfriend_!"


	23. Chapter 23

"I'm Zuko's _boyfriend_!" The word _'boyfriend'_ echoed in the valley.

Sokka's and Katara's jaws dropped. "Ren?!" they both said at the same time, then looked at each other, utterly confused as to how they both knew that person's name.

Aang frowned in surprise. Toph didn't flinch, but that was her usual reaction to everything.

"Hi Sokka! Hi Katara! And hi Aang, we've met before, but I didn't introduce myself properly. And hello young lady, nice to meet you." He bowed to each of them as he spoke.

"Who are you?" Toph asked, looking bored already.

"I'm Ren. Sokka told me you're the greatest earthbender in the world."

Sokka scratched his head, blushing. "Did I tell you that? Hahaha."

"Did he? Oh sweet!" Toph said, a bright smile on her face.

"Ren... You're not supposed to say that..." Sokka whispered between his teeth.

"What are you here for?" Katara cut the conversation off. Her hand was still over her water pouch, ready to fight.

Ren smiled at her. "I told you, I'm looking for Zuko."

Crowbats started singing in the foggy valley, flying in flock above the temple's main alley. Ren raised his head, and listened carefully. He turned to his right, and his eyes opened wide.

***

"Hello, Zuko here! But I guess you probably already know me... sort of." He scratched his head. "Uh, so, the thing is, I have a lot of firebending experience and I'm considered to be pretty good at it. Well you've seen me... You know, when I was attacking you?" He gestured with his hands. "Uh yeah, I guess I should apologize for that. But anyway, I'm good now! I mean, I thought I was good before, but now I realize I was bad. But anyway... I think it's time I joined your group and taught the Avatar firebending."

He waited for an answer. The koalatoad he was talking to croaked and jumped away.

"Yeah, I agree, that was terrible... Let me think."

_What would Uncle say?_

He walked in circles, rubbing his chin. "You need to look within yourself, to save yourself from your other self," he said, imitating Iroh's voice.

He sighed. "I can't make sense of any of the words I just said."

_What would Azula say?_

He took a high pitched voice. "You are going to be my friend now, or I'll burn everything and everyone you've ever loved to the ground! Hahahaha!"

He sat down against a tree. "I guess I'm just not good at impersonation."

_What would Ren say?_

_He wouldn't have to say anything, because he wouldn't have made the same terrible choices._

"I wish Ren was here."

He gave up for the night and went to bed.

Zuko had set camp in the forest behind the Western Air temple. He had followed the Avatar and his friends from afar on a hot air balloon after their defeat.

During the two months he had spent back in the Fire Palace, there wasn't a day he hadn't felt terrible. Even as he put back his prince crown on in his short topknot, even as he walked in front of the acclaiming crowd that welcomed him, even as his father encouraged him to participate in the war council, not once did he feel like he was supposed to be there.

Azula had told everybody including the Fire Lord that it was Zuko who had taken down the Avatar. Zuko couldn't figure out why. _What benefit can she get from that lie?_

"You were so nervous about meeting Father," she had told him, "I thought I could do something to help you a little, that's all. Why are you so anxious? It's just a white lie, it doesn't really matter... unless you think the Avatar has somewhat survived?"

"... No, it's impossible."

"Then why worry about that? Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed. Good night, Zuzu!"

Taking a lightning bolt to the chest would kill anybody, of course. Unless you had a healer with a special kind of magic water that could heal anything, right? Zuko knew Katara had that vial of spirit water, and there was no way she didn't use it on the Avatar.

_Wait, isn't that the same water Ren used on my eye? Did he get it in the North Pole? But how?_

Every time he thought about Ren, his heart would hurt like it had been stabbed with a hundred knives.

_I deserve this pain. I deserve every second of it._

He secretly visited his uncle in prison almost every night, but Iroh refused to say anything to him, not even a single word. Not knowing what else to do without his uncle's advice, Zuko paid an assassin to go kill the Avatar. But a few weeks later, on the eve of the eclipse, he realized, reading through some old texts about his grandfather, the Fire Lord Sozin, that the Fire Nation and the Avatar used to be allies. Avatar Roku, the last Avatar before Aang, was in fact Sozin's childhood friend! He continued to read for the whole night, uncovering more and more mysteries about the Avatar and the Fire Lord's relationship.

He stumbled upon a document that was certainly not meant for him to see... Avatar Roku's family tree. At the very end of it, there was a woman named Ursa. It was the name of Zuko's mother.

Zuko took a deep breath.

He knew for a long time now what he was meant to do, what the world really needed from him, but it was that newly found knowledge that finally made him take his final decision. As Avatar Roku's grandson, he was meant to reforge the bond between the Avatar and the Fire Lord, and put an end to this century-long war.

"Yeah right, reforging a bond." Zuko had just finished morning prayer. He hadn't slept at all.

"How am I supposed to become friends with someone I tried to capture for an entire year?"

The same koalatoad kept him company during breakfast. He sighed.

"If only Ren was here..."

The forest's birds started to croak all at once. It was so loud Zuko had to put his hands over his ears. A huge flock of black birds formed in the sky. It circled above Zuko's tent for a while, and then flew in the temple's direction. Zuko uncovered his ears, and he heard a word echoing from the valley.

"...boy...friend..."

_This voice!_

His heart started racing. He ran to the temple so fast he felt his lungs about to split in half. A black silhouette with short white hair stood in front of the temple entrance, near a huge pillar.

Zuko shouted with all his lungs "Ren!!!"


	24. Chapter 24

Ren was standing on the complete opposite side of the temple, but then Zuko blinked and Ren was jumping in his arms, the brightest smile on his face. Zuko caught him, spinning around.

"Did you change your mind? Tell me you’ve changed your mind!" Ren couldn’t keep himself from raising his voice.

Zuko simply nodded, a smile of relief on his face. Ren kissed him until they were both completely out of breath. Zuko was now considerably taller than him, and he had to tiptoe to reach his lips.

The Avatar's flying bison landed a few meters away, and the whole Gaang ran up to them, weapons and stances ready to fight. Ren released his embrace, and Zuko took a step forward.

"Uh, hello, Zuko here!" he scratched his head, not sure what else to do.

None of the kids answered him, but the bison got closer and roared, and then licked him with its giant tongue. Aang couldn't believe his eyes. Appa looked... _fond of_... Zuko?!

"I know you must be surprised to see me here-" Zuko continued.

Sokka cut him off "Not really, since you've followed us all over the world."

"... Right. Well uh... Anyway, what I wanted to tell you about is that I've changed. And I, uh, I'm good now. And, well, I think I should join your group. Oh," he looked at Aang, "and I can teach firebending to you."

"You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you?" Katara said. "I mean, how stupid do you think we are?"

"Yeah, all you've ever done is try to hunt us down and capture Aang," Sokka said. "And you've made Ren cry!"

Zuko looked at Sokka and then at Ren, confused as to how they even knew each other. But the answer would have to wait.

"I-I've done some good things!" He said. "I mean, I could've stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something, right?" He pointed at the animal, and the animal licked his entire arm.

"Appa does seem to like him," Toph said.

Zuko took another step forward. "I can understand why you wouldn't trust me, and I know I've made some mistakes in the past."

"Like when you attacked our village?" Sokka asked.

"Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?" Katara added.

Zuko took a deep breath. "Look, I admit I've done some awful things. I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should've sent that Fire Nation assassin after you. I'm gonna try to stop him-"

"WAIT! You sent Combustion Man after us?! That guy with the laser beams?!" Sokka pointed at Zuko with his boomerang.

"... Well, that's not his name, but..."

"That guy locked me and Toph in jail and tried to blow us all up!" Katara said.

Sokka glared at Ren. "And you! What is a good guy like you doing with the enemy?!"

"He's not my enemy," Ren said softly, looking at Zuko with heart shaped eyes, "he is my _prince_."

And then he glared back at Sokka with a smirk, very proud of the cringe he just had induced to everybody. Steam came out of Zuko's ears.

Ren continued, "Sokka, I told you. I can’t not love him, that’s impossible."

Zuko blushed so hard he felt lightheaded suddenly.

Sokka face-palmed. "I can't believe I comforted you for _Zuko's_ sake, of all people!"

"And I'm still thankful for that. Look, I'm even doing what you told me to do, embarrassing him and stuff. Seems like it was a good idea!" Ren said smugly, side-eyeing Zuko. The prince was so red one couldn't differentiate his neck from his tunic anymore.

"What are you here for?" Katara asked Ren, frowning.

"My goal was to meet Zuko again, wether it would be as an ally or as an enemy. I figured the easiest way to do so was to join you all. And I'm pretty fed up over this war too, so I'd like to help. I'm a decent fighter."

Sokka nodded, chin resting on his hand, and realized that he had never seen Ren fight, actually.

"Aang," Zuko said. "Why aren't you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me."

Aang glanced at his friends, and then back at Zuko and Ren. "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us."

"You need to get out of here, now!" Katara said, water ready to strike like a whip.

Zuko raised his voice, "I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore!"

"Either you leave, or we attack!"

He kneeled down, startling Ren. "If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner."

"No, we WON'T!" Katara whipped him down, drenching him. Ren forced himself not to react too quickly. He knew he probably was the only chance Zuko had to make them change their minds, and if they deemed Ren as a 'bad guy' too, Zuko would be completely out of luck.

"Get out of here and don't come back!" Katara said. "And if we see you again... well, we'd better not see you again!"

Ren reached down to Zuko, but he stood up without taking his hand. He walked away without a word. Ren followed him, glancing back at Sokka, eyes full of worry.

Once they entered the forest, Ren took Zuko’s hand, intertwining their fingers.

"Hey, Zuko," he said softly. "I'm so proud of you."

"Why? I failed again. I keep failing and failing, all the time."

"You didn't fail. You just took the first step in the right direction, but you still have a long way to go. I'll be by your side, Zuko. I'll walk this road with you."

Zuko's heart flooded with relief, and love, and gratitude.

“Ren," he stopped walking and cupped Ren’s face. “I’m so sorry. I will make things better, I promise."

Ren smiled, accepting his apology with a nod. They walked hand in hand to Zuko’s camp.

"Wow..." Ren said, "you took some creative liberties with that tent."

Zuko had set up a tent canvas between the branches of four different trees, and it was a miracle it was still holding up after an entire night. The two boys spent the day building a sturdier tent, under Ren's more expert supervision. They also gathered some wood, wild berries and water for the night. They talked and talked for hours on end, catching up with everything. What happened after Ba Sing Se, how was Master Piandao, when did Ren and Sokka meet, they even talked about things before Ba Sing Se, as they hadn’t found the time to share them yet.

“Your friend is called Jet?! Hopefully it’s just a coincidence because I know a guy named Jet and he’s a horrible person!" Zuko looked outraged.

Ren chuckled, “Well, guess we’ll find out when you meet him."

At the end of the day, they came up with a way to make things right with the Avatar. The plan was to send Ren back to the temple the next day to try to negotiate.

They ate sitting next to each other in front of the bonfire. A family of koalatoads kept them company, croaking from time to time to participate in the conversation.

"So how did you find me?" Zuko asked.

Ren looked confused. "The crowbat. You told it you wanted me back, remember?"

_What?_

"Did I? I wasn't even around any crowbat."

"You put your tent right under a crowbat's nest, Zuko."

"... Oh." He really hadn't paid any attention to that sort of things. "But I didn't tell it anything, though?"

"Maybe you said what you were thinking aloud? They can hear literally anything for at least three miles around."

_Oh._

"... Maybe I did. But how did you know? Did it tell you to come here?" Zuko asked in disbelief.

Ren blinked. "Yeah it did! You were lucky I wasn't that far away, so this time it didn't take me an entire week!"

"Wait, what? I don't understand!"

"But Zuko, this isn't even the first time you tell crowbats to fetch me? That's what you told your uncle to do in Ba Sing Se when you were sick!"

"When you told me about them I thought you were hallucinating!"

"No, I wasn't! Oh Agni, don't tell me I've been scouring the Earth Kingdom looking for you for six entire months just because you didn't believe me when I said you should talk to crowbats..." he rubbed his eyes, tired.

Zuko was utterly confused. "But... but how does it work? You can _talk_ to them?"

"Hmm, sort of. Crowbats communicate a lot more than the other birds, so they have sort of a common knowledge that all crowbats share. I've became friends with one of them when I was a kid, and now they all know me. We can't have literal conversations, but they can show me a direction if I need one. And since they know my name, they understand when someone's calling for me."

Zuko's jaw slowly dropped as Ren finished his explanation. "... This is incredible. Ren, you're incredible."

Ren blushed far more than he wanted to admit. Hearing Zuko praise him like that made the back of his head tingle, and a pool of warmth bubbled in his core. He hid his face with his hands, not sure of what else to do. A koalatoad croaked in encouragement.

Zuko took his hands off his face and leaned forward to kiss him on the lips. He took Ren in his arms, and Ren rested his head on his shoulder, looking at the bonfire. He yawned, feeling suddenly drowsy wrapped in so much warmth. It felt like he hadn't slept in months.

"I'm exhausted too. We should go to bed," Zuko said. Ren nodded sleepily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The "I'm Zuko's boyfriend" moment is what spawned the whole fic idea in my head!


	25. Chapter 25

A few hours into the night, Zuko woke up hearing leaves ruffle on the ground.

"WHO'S THERE?" He stormed out of the tent and threw flames in circles around the unidentified person.

"It's me!" Toph said, but she took a step back and shouted in pain, "Ow! YOU'VE BURNT MY FEET!"

"I'm sorry, it was a mistake!" Zuko shouted back. He dashed to help her out.

"Get away from me!" She crawled backward and threw rocks in his direction.

Ren was woken up by the noise, and fortunately stepped out of the tent just before a rock fell on it.

Zuko dodged the projectiles and grabbed Toph's arm, "Let me help you! I'm sorry!"

"Get off me! GET OFF ME!"

She hit him hard with an earth pillar, then ran away pushing herself forward using earthbending.

"I didn't know it was you! COME BACK!" Zuko shouted pointlessly. He laid on the ground next to Ren's feet. "Ugh, why am I so bad at being _good_?"

Ren ruffled Zuko's hair gently, and left to look for Toph. He found her near a river, trying to bathe her burning feet.

"Sorry young lady", he tried to speak calmly but he still startled her. "This is dangerous, you shouldn't get near water when you can't see," he said after having dodged a flying rock.

"That's why I've been avoiding baths my entire life," she replied once she recognized his voice.

Ren didn't expect the joke, and puffed. He stood next to her.

"... Why didn't I see you coming?" she asked once she felt him getting closer.

Ren hesitated. "... I mean no offense, but... I... I think you're blind..." He couldn't see Toph's face but he pictured her rolling her eyes.

"Oh! Right! Sokka told me you see through the vibrations in the earth!" He took two steps to the side. Seemingly, nothing changed. "Can you see me now?"

Toph smiled and turned her face towards him. "Yes! Finally! But what did you do?"

Ren smiled mysteriously. "That's a secret technique. It's for walking in silence, I didn't want to wake some kind of beast in these woods. Sorry I didn't realize you wouldn't see me because of it."

"Wow, that's so cool!" she exclaimed.

"Thanks, young lady," Ren said with a smile.

"Don't call me 'young lady'," Toph said. "I hate that. I'm not a lady, I'm an earthbender."

"You can't be a lady and an earthbender at the same time?"

"Yes you can, but that's not who _I_ am."

Ren hummed. "I understand. I don't like being called a man myself."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It feels wrong. Like they're talking about someone else."

"Exactly!" Toph exclaimed. "Or like, to them, I'm wearing some kind of disguise that I can't ever remove and they can only see that and not me!"

"That's right, that's the exact feeling!" Ren exclaimed.

"You're lucky you have a pretty voice though. For me, you don't look like a man at all."

"What do I look like to you?"

Toph thought carefully before she spoke. "You look like a bird," she said, "like a bird with bound wings." Ren opened his eyes wide. "That's how your voice sounds, at least. Forget about it, I'm just in the mood for poetry, I guess," she said and scratched her head.

Ren stayed silent for a minute. When he spoke, his voice was smiling. "How should I call you then?" he asked, continuing their previous conversation.

"Just call me Toph!" she said, and turned toward Ren. "I don't know about the others, but I like you already! You said you wanted to join us, right? That's a yes for me!"

"Ah, thank you," Ren said, chuckling. "But if you want me you'll have to take Zuko with me."

Toph shrugged. "Mmh, that's okay. I think I can work with that."

Ren blinked. "You're not mad at Zuko?"

"Nah. He hurt me, but it was an accident. And I can tell when someone is lying, and when he was in the temple, I knew he was telling the truth," she explained. "The others seem to forget something crucial: Aang needs a firebending teacher. And now one comes on a silver platter and they don't wan't him? That's just crazy to me."

"... I mean I understand them," Ren said. "Zuko has been chasing them all over the world for what, almost a year? Sometimes I wonder if I would have stayed with him if I knew the horrible stuff he did to them. Katara said something about her mother's necklace, right?"

"Wait, you didn't know all of this?"

"... I have to admit I turned _a blind eye_ , hum, I mean, I kind of ignored what he was doing during the chase. I didn't want to know, because I didn't agree with any of it."

"Then why didn't you try to stop him?" Toph frowned.

"I... He has been my whole world for three entire years. I have nothing other than him. I literally threw my entire life away just to be with him when he got banished."

"Wow, that's some dedication."

"You must think I'm crazy."

Toph snorted. "Yeah, but I mean, that's the vibe I get from anyone who's ever been in love. I just don't get it."

Foxdoves sang in the trees.

"How are your feet?" Ren asked.

"They still hurt quite bad. I don't think I can walk," Toph said and wiggled her toes in the water.

"I could carry you back to the temple, if that's okay."

Toph frowned. "Are you sure? I'm heavy, you know."

Ren smiled. "I'm stronger than I look!"

He crouched down and let Toph climb up his back. She put her head on his shoulder. She wasn't actually _that_ heavy, but he didn't tell her. They walked to the temple, chatting about combat techniques and Toph's short career as a pro earthwrestler.

Once Ren came back to the camp, Zuko was sound asleep next to the bonfire. The tent canvas had a big hole in it. Ren cuddled against him, putting his head over his chest and grabbing his arms to wrap them around himself like a blanket.

"I'm never letting you go again," Ren whispered lovingly, and kissed Zuko's chest before falling asleep. _My sweet firebender._


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: vomit (after the scream)

The next day, as Zuko and Ren headed to the temple, a huge explosion resonated in the valley.

“Oh no, oh no! This is terrible!" Zuko said once he recognized the sound, eyes full of terror. They dashed to the temple.

There was a giant man, with an eye tattooed on his forehead, blasting laser beams in Aang’s direction.

“I have to stop him!" Zuko shouted.

Ren took out his bow and aimed at the enemy’s head, but the man turned to face him and blasted a laser beam in his direction. Ren dodged just in time, fearing for his life once he saw the size of the explosion the beam had caused. How was that even possible?! Was it firebending? Where did that guy come from?

"Stop!" Zuko had dashed to reach the man. "I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore!" He rushed and put himself in front of the assassin, raising his arms. "The mission is off! I'm ordering you to stop!"

The man just shoved him to the side like he was nothing, and shot another beam in the Avatar's direction.

Zuko pressed forward once again. "If you keep attacking, I won't pay you!" He pushed the man's arm, but it was weighing a ton and it didn't budge. "All right, I'll pay you double!"

The man finally looked at Zuko, but instead of answering like a normal human-being, he shot a laser beam at the prince at point-blank rang.

"ZUKO!" Ren screamed.

A blue boomerang cut through the fog and hit the huge man right in the center of the forehead, making him stumble for a while. Once he found his balance back, he charged another beam, but it literally backfired and made him implode on himself. The explosion he caused was so big that the whole downward tower he was standing on fell down into the fog.

"Yeah, boomerang!" Sokka shouted in joy. _But what happened to Zuko?_

The Gaang saw Ren jump off into the white foggy void and come back—wait, no—make a _ten_ - _meters_ - _high_ _jump_ to climb back, carrying Zuko onto a safe ledge?! Their jaws dropped.

_Did he...? Did he just airbend?!_

Aang dashed to go meet the two boys, airgliding through the temple.

"Ren! Zuko!" he yelled.

The white-haired boy didn't answer. In fact, he didn't move at all. He was like a statue, bent over Zuko, eyes wide opened, pupils completely retracted. Zuko was safe, and was looking at him in surprise, and fear.

"Ren, what's happening?" he asked. He cupped his lover's face. "Ren?"

_"... Aah..."_

Ren covered Zuko's ears with both hands, before screaming so hard his lungs almost caught on fire. His scream made the entire temple shake. All of the forest birds joined him and croaked with him. The look on his face was of utmost horror.

Zuko had never seen him so scared. He tried to cover Ren's mouth, but his hands were pushed back by the air coming out of him. He was projecting giant waves of vibrating air in all directions, so strong they were visible to the human eye. Zuko and Aang could feel their bones shaking under their flesh. The stones and dust on the ground started rising, as if there was an earthquake. If Ren wasn't stopped soon, the whole temple would crumbled down. Aang, not knowing what else to do, airbended a small ball of wind that he pushed into Ren's mouth, choking him for just a second. Luckily, it snapped him out of his panic attack. He coughed his lungs out.

"Ren! Are you okay?" Aang and Zuko both asked at the same time.

Ren started vomiting on the ground.

"Oh spirits! What happened?!" Sokka, Toph and Katara landed with Appa next to them.

"I don't want to end up both blind and deaf!" Toph said. "Oh crap, what is that smell?"

Ren was coughing his entire stomach out, and Zuko was rubbing his back, not sure of what else to do. They waited until he calmed down and flew him back to the other side of the temple on Appa. His entire body was trembling. Katara waterbended over his stomach, easing his pain a little. He wouldn't say anything, shaking his head every time anybody would ask a question.

"Hey guys," Aang said calmly. "Can you leave us alone for a while?"

Zuko glanced at Ren, heart full of worry, but he nodded and walked away with the others. They sat outside the temple, near the water fountain, Zuko standing a few meters away from the group.

"I can't believe I'm saying that," Sokka sighed, "but thanks, Zuko."

Katara was still frowning at the prince, but she nodded in agreement. Toph just smiled.

Zuko took his chance. "Listen," he said, "I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday. I've been through a lot in the past few years, and it's been hard. But I'm realizing that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth. I thought I had lost my honor and that somehow my father could return it to me. But I know now that honor is something you earn for yourself, by choosing to do what's right. All I want now is to play my part in ending this war. The Avatar has to learn all four elements, and I know my destiny is to help him restore balance to the world."

Zuko bowed to Toph. "I'm sorry for what I did to you. It was an accident. Fire can be dangerous and wild, so as a firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending, so I don't hurt people unintentionally."

"That's okay," she knocked her fist against her palm. "I'll have plenty of time to get back at you for burning my feet!"

Aang walked out with Ren. "He's feeling a bit better now, but he'll need some rest."

Zuko took him in his arms.

"What happened to him?" Katara asked.

Aang glanced at Ren, and Ren nodded back.

"Ren is an airbender. The last _true_ airbender."


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut once Zuko arrives in the bedroom.

_The last true airbender._

Ren made Zuko sit down on the ground with him. Aang and his friends joined them, forming a small circle, impatient to know but compassionate enough not to press him.

Ren started speaking softly, his voice coarse from the scream. "I'm not an Air Nomad. In fact, I don't really know what my lineage is. My parents died when I was six, killed by Fire Nation soldiers because they found out my mom was an airbender. She hid me inside a tree bark in the middle of a forest and made me swear to never airbend ever."

Zuko rubbed his back gently, encouraging him.

"I survived by eating berries and talking to birds," Ren continued. "A merchant traveling through the woods found me a year later and sold me as a servant to a horrible, horrible man." He looked at Zuko. "You know who I'm talking about."

_Yeah, that giant guy, back at the Fire festival._

"Of course I couldn't stop myself from airbending, it would come up naturally all the time," Ren said.

Sokka nodded frantically, even though he had no idea how any of this bending stuff worked.

"I learnt most of my bending from crowbats and foxdoves. I'm what I like to call a 'soundbender'. I can't airbend like Aang at all. I... What happened earlier... when I saved Zuko... I had no idea I could do that. I think if I tried again, I would fall to my death! I—I was so scared I did it without thinking."

"Maybe I could teach you how to do it again!" Aang smiled.

Ren's expression darkened. "I'm sorry I screamed so hard. I was just so—so scared that something had happened to Zuko, and then that someone had found out about my bending, my fears all pilled up and my mind went blank. I hope I didn't hurt anybody."

"No, we're fine." Katara said. Ren sighed in relief.

Zuko looked at Aang, full of determination. He bowed down quite low. "Thank you for caring for him, Avatar."

Aang bowed back. "Thank you for saving us from Combustion Man," he said. "I heard what you said to the others, and I'd like you to become my firebending teacher," he glanced back at his friends, "... if that's okay with you, guys."

Toph grinned and said, "Friends of my friends are my friends too!" making Ren smile.

"Sokka?" Aang asked.

"Of course he can. I mean, Ren likes him, so he mustn't be _that_ bad."

"Katara?"

She frowned. "Fine. I'll go along with whatever you think is right," she said with a somber tone. "I still don't trust him."

"I won't let you down, I promise!" Zuko said, ecstatic.

Zuko and Aang went back to his camp, flying on Appa, to get all of his stuff back. Katara waterhealed Ren's throat, and then made him tour the temple, explaining where everything was. He felt much better already, glad that the heaviness of the conversation had lifted off so quick. Katara left him alone in his room once Zuko had come back. It was a room at the back of the temple, with a window that was just a large hole in the wall.

"Did you pick up the tent canvas?" Ren asked his boyfriend once they were alone. "Even with the hole Toph has made in it, I think it'll be big enough to cover that window."

Zuko lifted his eyebrow, a relieved smile forming on his lips. He knew exactly what was on Ren's mind, and it dissipated every worry he still had.

"It won't block out the noise, though," he said, handing out the tent canvas.

"No, but _I_ will," Ren winked. He still couldn't believe he was now actually able to _talk_ about his soundbending!

They hung the canvas up and joined the others for the meal preparation. Once they came back after dinner, Ren jumped on Zuko, kissing him with all his soul.

Zuko ran his fingers through his short hair. It was as soft as ever. "You know, I didn't say anything because I know you must be quite upset about it but... I really like your hair like that."

Ren sighed. "Yeah, you're right, I _am_ upset. I hate it so much."

"You're still so pretty, you know."

"I don't care about being pretty, it's just that..." He wanted to say something, but was scared to do so.

Zuko cupped his cheek, with the gentlest expression on his face. Ren inhaled slowly.

“... It's just that people automatically assume I'm a boy now, and I hate that." He looked really bummed, frowning.

"Are you not a boy?"

"The words don't matter. I don't want to be defined by that. Who cares if I'm a boy or a girl? I wish I could be both. And none at the same time. I don't hate the word 'boy', it just feels... completely meaningless to me. Do you feel like you know me better because you know I'm a boy?"

Zuko thought for a moment.

"... Not really, I mean I think I know you pretty well, but it's because we've been together for so long."

"Exactly. So why would that information be relevant? The world doesn't need to know what the inside of my underwear looks like. At least, when I had long hair, they couldn't tell right away."

It made Zuko rethink a lot of things. But he pushed these reflexions to the side for now. "You're right. This is no one else's business."

He pulled Ren to the bed. It was as hard as rock—because it was literally made of rock—so they had put both of their blankets on top as a mattress, but it hadn't really changed anything.

"Maybe we should go back to the forest and sleep on the grass," Ren suggested.

Zuko snorted. "And fuck on the forest ground? Nah, I don't want to get ants climbing on my legs while you ram into me."

Ren laughed. "Ew, gross!" he said, as if that would have any impact on his arousal. He had his hands all over Zuko already, undressing him in a matter of seconds.

"Now your turn," Zuko said with a gentle smile once he was stark naked.

Ren let him undress him, savoring the familiar sensation, the tenderness, the intimacy of the moment. Zuko pulled down his pants at last, and looked up slowly, relishing the sight of Ren's pearly skin in the candle light. His face wasn't as round as it used to be, and his muscles were more defined. He looked better than ever. His dick also looked better than ever. Zuko licked his lips, golden eyes glistening in the shadow.

Ren wiggled his hips. "Wanna taste?" he said playfully.

Zuko didn't even nod before shoving the entire shaft down his warm mouth.

"Oh Agni!" Ren shouted, pushing his head backward. "Zuko! Mmph!"

Zuko took his hands and placed them on his head, encouraging Ren to hold him. He was bobbing up and down slowly, swallowing Ren's dick, pushing it against the back of his throat, humming when it did so.

Ren was a moaning mess already. A _talkative_ moaning mess.

"Zuko, you're so good, I feel like I'm-ah... melting! Ah! Your mouth is so hot, so soft! You're incredible!"

He had hooked both of his legs over Zuko's shoulders, and Zuko's hands were running up and down his thighs, rubbing his inner thighs with his thumbs, feeling the crease between the thighs and the butt cheeks. _It really is my favorite place on Earth._

"Zuko... Zuko!" Ren called, "My love, please stop moving, _please_!"

Zuko did as he was told and looked up, concerned, hair disheveled, Ren's dick poking out inside his right cheek.

Ren covered his eyes with both hands. _Oh Agni, you're too hot._

"What's the matter?" Zuko asked, removing Ren's hands gently.

"I want it to last, Zuko." Ren pulled him into a hug. "I don't want to come in your mouth. I want to make love to you tonight, and I'm not going to if you continue blowing me like that."

Zuko chuckled, and kissed him breathless. "Make love, you said?" he smirked. "Wanna do me from the back?"

Ren opened his eyes wide, and nodded frantically before he could form any word in his mind. Zuko pulled out a giant bottle of oil from his bag.

"How did you—why is it so big? How did you know you would need it?" Ren was so confused.

"It's for burns, you pervert!" Zuko laughed. "My plan was and still is to teach firebending here, so it might get handy. It wasn't supposed to be used as lube."

"Oh." Ren felt stupid. "I guess, with what I brought, we have enough for an entire year, then."

"You've brought some?"

"My plan was to get your ass back, so I figured it might be useful."

Zuko faked being offended, "Only my ass?"

Ren smiled smugly, "I knew I still had your heart." To be honest, he had had a lot of doubts about it, but it didn’t matter anymore.

Zuko lubed up his hands and jumped on Ren, kissing him all over and making him laugh out loud.

"You're completely right," Zuko said. He straddled him, and slid his own fingers up his butt.

Ren hissed. "You're so freaking gorgeous, you know that? Every time I look at you I find more things I like about you." He stroked Zuko's dick, biting his bottom lip. "Wait. Did your dick get bigger?"

"I don't know, did it?" Zuko replied, panting. "I got a growth spurt recently."

Ren licked his lips. "I'm not complaining." Zuko's muscle growth was a visual feast for sure, and the fact he was now almost a head taller than Ren made him give the most perfect hugs.

Zuko bent down and shoved his tongue down Ren's mouth. He already had three fingers up his ass and was thrusting against them eagerly. They shuffled on the bed, switching positions a little awkwardly, and then soon, Ren was slowly sliding his dick inside his lover, Zuko almost bent in half on the bed, whimpering.

"This is the best," Ren said, breathless. Zuko couldn't agree more.

He moaned loudly, savoring the stretch that he had missed so much. Ren grabbed his hips and pulled himself out gently, and then back in. Surely, Zuko had frequently fingered himself, because even with rushed preparations, his ass was swallowing Ren's dick so easily. _So much food for thoughts!_

"Zuko, oh Zuko... You're eating me so well," Ren said breathlessly.

Zuko's only reply was to whimper helplessly when his lover suddenly thrusted harder.

"Have you fingered yourself a lot when we were apart? Your ass feels so hot and smooth and perfect." Ren reached down to run his fingers along Zuko's back. He traced along the muscles, feeling the skin texture, grabbing and squeezing anything he could, ramming into Zuko with strength, making him shout in pleasure.

"You'll have to show me, Zuko." Ren reached down to stroke Zuko's dick, joining his hips' pace. "You'll have to show me how good you look when you make yourself come with your fingers. I want to watch you do that, _for hours_." He pounded harder, Zuko moaning with all his chest.

His hand went to meet Ren's, helping him stroke his dick. Ren took it as a signal to thrust faster, and grabbed Zuko's hips firmly. He wasn't talking anymore, just panting and moaning loudly. They both felt like burning volcanos, just about to erupt. Ren came first and Zuko right after, rolling back his eyes, spilling cum everywhere on the blanket. They stayed still for a minute, trying to catch their breath.

“Wow," Zuko said when he came down from his high, “You’ve become so talkative!"

Ren pulled himself out and laid next to him, cuddling.

“I realized there were too many things I wanted to tell you but never found the courage to. And also, since I go through the effort of soundproofing every room we fuck in, I might as well use the opportunity to say out loud how amazing your ass feels. Do you realize how hard it is to soundbend and fuck you at the same time?"

Zuko smirked, “Is that why you’re the king of premature ejaculations?"

“You’re gonna regret bringing that up." He spanked Zuko’s ass with a loud but playful smack. Zuko laughed out loud. “It’s entirely your fault," Ren muffled against his neck, "you’re too sexy for your own good."

“You know what ‘sexy’ is? It’s when you are so comfortable that you let all the barriers go down, like you've been doing lately. When you don’t treat me like a prince anymore, but like the boyfriend I am to you. I don’t want any of that hierarchical shit between us anymore. You’re mine, and I’m yours, and who cares about my lineage. We're just two boys in love with each other."

Ren jumped on him and drowned him in heart shaped kisses.

"... Sorry about calling you a 'boy'," Zuko said when they parted. "It just slipped."

"I don't care about what word _you_ use. I'm _your_ boy, or _your_ girl, or _your_ whatever you want to call me. It's just words, and it's you, so anything is fine."

Zuko frowned, thinking. His eyes suddenly lit up, and he smiled. "How about my _turtleduck_?" he said, brushing his lips against Ren's.

"No, because _you're_ the turtleduck!" Ren was expecting him to protest at the nickname.

"Okay fine," Zuko surprisingly replied, moving a strand of Ren's hair away from his eyes. "Then what about... my _sun_?"

Ren stopped breathing. "... I don't deserve that," he whispered.

"You deserve the _world_ , Ren." Zuko put his forehead against his lover's. "I love you. You're _my_ sun, I can't live without you."

Ren squeezed Zuko so hard he almost couldn't breath anymore. He hid his face against Zuko's neck and muffled something inaudible.

Zuko chuckled, "I didn't hear you!"

Ren pulled himself back up. "I said: I love you too." He kissed Zuko and wiggled against his hips.

"Are you hard again?!"

Ren grinned, and shoved his tongue down Zuko's mouth.


	28. Chapter 28

"Do we really have to train so early?"

Zuko and Ren had waken Aang as soon as the first ray of Agni had peeked through the horizon.

"We have to pray the Sun first. Firebenders needs the Sun to function, as does every form of life in this world. I think it's important that you learn how to pray."

Zuko and Ren gestured in the air, starting the sun salute. They were moving in complete synchronization.

"Well, okay... But Ren's not a firebender, so why does he need to be doing that?"

Ren smiled, "I'm not a firebender, but I'm Fire Nation, so that's what I do."

"O-okay..." Aang joined them in their motions, emptying his head, trying to relax.

He hadn't slept well, because he knew he would start firebending practice today. He had tried firebending once, a year earlier, and had accidentally burnt Katara. Since that day, he had sworn to never firebend again. But he knew that mastering firebending was as necessary as mastering airbending or any other element. Now that Zuko had shown that he too understood what it felt like to hurt people with your firebending without meaning to, Aang knew he could trust him as his master.

Zuko stood up, and told Aang, "Okay, so give me what you got! Any kind of fire is fine!"

Aang took a deep breath, and threw a punch in air, producing a tiny spark and a bunch of smoke that smelled like burnt egg. "Uh, I think I need a little more instructions. Can I get a demonstration?"

"Fine. You might want to take a few steps back." Zuko inhaled, and punched in front of him, planting his foot on the ground, stance perfect. He produced a flame the size of a... candle light? Aang clapped. Ren frowned.

"What was that?!" Zuko yelled, dumbfounded. "This is the worst firebending I've ever seen!" He punched the air again, and the same thing happened. "What's happening to me?!" He took a step back. "Just breath and..." He threw his palm forward, adopting a new stance. A tiny flame spurted off his hand.

Aang yawned. "That one kinda felt hot."

"Don't patronize me!" Zuko barked. "You know what it's supposed to look like!"

Aang laid on the ground, hands behind his head. "Sorry, Sifu Hotman."

"And stop calling me _that_!"

"Hey jerks!" Sokka had just woken up, and waved at Ren and Aang. "Mind if I watch you jerks do your jerkbending?" He chuckled at his own joke.

Zuko grunted. He spent the entire day trying to firebend, and every attempt failed without exception. Aang asked Ren if he wanted to learn Nomad-style airbending. Ren was hesitant, but figured out it could be insightful. They walked to the temple's training ground. It looked like a playground for giants, with four-meters-tall poles planted everywhere in a seemingly random pattern.

"This is where the young monks would play airball! I'll show you how to play later. For now, show me what you can do!"

To be honest, Ren didn't really know what Aang expected. He climbed one of the poles in three big steps, pushing against the wood with his toes. Aang was so confused.

"I've never seen airbending like that. The air didn't even move when you jumped. It's so weird!"

"How would you do it?"

Aang jumped very high, pushing himself from the ground with a large swish of downward wind. He fell down softly onto the top of the pole, sitting on it.

"I propel myself from the ground using my breath."

"Oh, so it's completely different then. My technique is that I remove the air between my foot and the surface it touches. It means I can't jump in the air very high, but I can climb anything at any angle."

"Does that mean you could walk on the ceiling?"

"Yes! Although not longer than a minute. It takes a lot of concentration."

Aang was ecstatic. "I bet it does!" He jumped down on the ground in a big swoosh of air. Ren did the same, although no air moved with him.

"Where did you learn that technique?" Aang asked. "Did the forest birds teach it to you?"

"It's the only thing my mom taught me. She taught me how to climb, and also how to walk silently. It's the same thing really. You just move away or hold back the air under your feet, and you're good to go. It works on any surface, including water."

Aang lit up, "So you can walk on water? Would it work on ocean waves?"

"... I don't know. I've never tried it."

"We need to check that out next time we're at the beach!"

Aang was talking like it was obvious they were going to go on a vacation together. Ren's heart warmed up at the cute idea.

"And what about airbending in combat?" Aang asked. "Should we just go for a match or do you prefer to do a demonstration?"

Ren looked away, blushing. "... I just use my sabers."

Aang looked distraught. "You don't airbend?!"

Ren just shook his head. "There's too much risk that I'd be found out. The Fire Nation wants me dead."

Aang's ears ringed in the silence. He suddenly realized what Ren had been through, having to hide his airbending his whole life.

"Okay," he said, eyes full of determination, "I'll teach you as much as I can."

Aang showed Ren a short series of fighting motions, resulting in a powerful forward swoosh of air.He deconstructed each pose slowly, correcting Ren and pointing out each detail. His explanations were rather clear, but when Ren tried the poses one after the other, no wind came out of him. Absolutely none.

Aang's eyes opened wide. "I don't understand, you did it perfectly!"

Ren looked at his palms, confused. "Maybe I just need a lot of practice."

"Yeah," Aang smiled, "let's try again!"

They spent the rest of the day trying to get some wind out of Ren, but every attempt failed without exception. And for some reason, he felt absolutely exhausted afterward.

"Maybe I'm just a terrible airbender," he said, sitting down. "I mean, you're the Avatar so it makes sense that you'd be gifted at any type of bending, right? I could just simply be a crappy airbender, that wouldn't be too surprising. There's a ton of crappy earthbenders, it wouldn't make sense if every airbender left were super talented. Even if there are just two of us."

"Nah. You shouldn't give up already. We'll figure it out." Aang reached to pull Ren up, and they went back to the temple, meeting with their friends.

During dinner, Zuko sat down next to Ren, looking particularly grumpy. "I think I lost it."

Ren was stirring the potato soup, and looked up from his cooking. "Lost what?"

"My firebending. I don't know why, but I just can't do it anymore."

Katara laughed out loud. Zuko glared at her. "What?" she said. "I'm just laughing at the irony. You know, how it would've been nice for us if you lost it a long time ago?" She smiled, bitter.

Ren rubbed Zuko's back. "It has to be there somewhere."

"It's not lost, it's just... weaker for some reason," Zuko said.

"Or maybe you're just not as good as you think you are," Katara retorted.

"... Ouch," Toph commented.

Zuko sighed. "I bet it's because I changed sides. I know it sounds ridiculous..."

"Your firebending comes from rage, doesn't it?" Ren asked. "Maybe you're right. You just don't have enough anger to fuel it the way you use to."

"So... All we need to do is make Zuko angry?" Sokka said. "Easy enough!" He poked Zuko in the ribcage with his chopsticks.

"ENOUGH!" Zuko shouted, and then took a deep breath and calmed down. "Look. Even if you're right, I don't want to rely on hate and anger anymore. There has to be another way."

"You're gonna need to learn to draw your firebending from a different source," Toph said. "I recommend: the _original_ source. Go back to whatever the original source of firebending is."

"Does that mean we can just throw Zuko into a volcano?" Sokka asked. Ren puffed.

"I don't know," Toph said. "For us earthbenders, it was the badgermoles. One day, when I was little, I ran away and hid in a cave. That's where I met them. They were blind, just like me, so we understood each other. I was able to learn earthbending, not just as a martial art, but as an extension of my senses."

"That's amazing, Toph!" Aang said. "I learnt from the monks, but the original airbenders were the sky bison. Maybe you could give me a lesson sometime, buddy!" He said to Appa. Appa groaned softly in response.

"Well this doesn't help me," Zuko said, head low. "The original firebenders were the dragons, and they're extinct now."

"What do you mean? The previous Avatar, Roku... he had a dragon! And there were plenty of dragons when I was a kid."

"While you slept in that iceberg for a hundred years, the Fire Nation aristocracy started to hunt dragons as a hobby. Taking down a dragon was regarded as the greatest feat of strength, and my uncle became known as the 'Dragon of the West' when he took down the last one, a couple decades ago."

"Your uncle, you mean Iroh?" Aang said. "I thought he was a good guy!"

"He had a complicated past," Zuko said, looking away. "Seems like it runs in the family."

"Maybe there's another way," Ren said, resting his hand on Zuko's shoulder. "The first people to learn from the dragons were the ancient Sun Warriors. They died off thousands of years ago, but their civilization wasn't too far from where we are now. Maybe you can learn something by poking around the ruins."

"The monks said that shadows of the past can sometimes be felt in the present," Aang said. "It might be worth going out there to check."

Zuko nodded, but wasn't very hopeful. He and Aang departed early the next morning. Ren stayed behind, and went to the forest to pick up berries for breakfast. When he came back, everybody was still asleep, so he took the opportunity to take a bath in the clear fountain at the temple's entrance. He had no idea if it was blasphemous or not, but his urge to finally feel completely clean won over his worry. The water was cold but it wasn't too bad. He scrubbed himself off as best as he could, and quickly put his clothes back on when he heard a door open and some rocks rumble.

"Good morning Katara, good morning Toph."

"Good morning Ren. Did you sleep well?" Katara said warmly. Ren nodded, smiling.

Toph sat at the fountain, bathing her burnt feet. Katara bended the water over them, helping the healing process.

Ren hovered his hands above Katara's. "I can feel the blood circulating. You're pulling the moisture towards the wound to accelerate the healing, right?"

“Wait, you can feel that with airbending?!"

“Yeah, there’s air everywhere in the human body! I don't think I can bend it, though. Maybe Aang could."

“I hope not. That would sound an awful lot like bloodbending," Katara said, concerned.

“What, that exists? Can you do that?" Ren asked with sparkling eyes, but his smile quickly dropped when he saw Katara's stern face.

"That's crazy how many things we can do with bending if we put our minds into it." Toph pondered, not realizing the tone shift in the conversation. "I wonder why nobody has thought of bloodbending before. And I even had to invent metalbending myself!"

"Metalbending?!" Ren's jaw dropped. "You can do that?!"

"Why are you so surprised? If one can bloodbend with air, anything is possible!"

"... That's so _wicked_ ," he said with a somber voice.

Toph was very confused. "You mean 'wicked _'_ like, 'cool', right?"

"No. It's a terrible thing. Can you imagine if every earthbender could metalbend? How incredibly dangerous that would be? The Earth Kingdom would probably become worse than the Fire Nation. And who could beat them? At least it takes time for a firebender to make metal. Whereas for earthbenders, they would be able to build a bazillion battleships in just a few _days._ Can you imagine what kind of wicked weapons they could build with that power? _"_

Toph stopped breathing. A shiver ran down her entire spine. “... I didn’t think about that."

Ren patted her arm with a compassionate smile.

_That is a lot of responsibilities to carry on such young shoulders._

"Metalbending, bloodbending, even those lightnings Azula can produce... All of this is too powerful," Katara said with a somber tone. "It was never meant to be, and yet here we are, bending against the law of Nature itself. We have to be careful."

Ren and Toph silently nodded in agreement.


	29. Chapter 29

It was the middle of the afternoon when Sokka finally crawled out of his man cave. Toph was napping on the ground, and Katara and Ren were mending the tent canvas.

"Can't believe I wasn't woken up by the ground shaking, or drenching rain, or a tornado, or a volcano exploding!" Sokka said cheerfully. "What's happening? Why is everyone so calm and so serene?"

"Aang and Zuko departed for the Sun Warrior ruins at sunrise," Ren reminded him.

"Oh yeah, no risk of Jerkbender attacking us today. I still have to get used to that."

Ren's eyes were laughing. "Is that how you always call Zuko?"

"Yep. Sorry to offend you, but your boyfriend is a jerk sometimes," Sokka said, knowing that he wasn't offending anyone.

Ren just shrugged, "Can't say you're wrong."

"What do you even like about him?"

"Do you really want to have that conversation?" Katara asked her brother. Her mood had turned sour, hearing about Zuko.

"Heck yeah I do! It's a literal mystery to me." Sokka went to reach his friend's hand. "Ren, let's go somewhere else before I get drowned by my sister."

They went inside a building next to the temple. It was a rather large room, with a blackboard covering one of the walls, some desks scattered across the room, and a collection of metal bells and bowls put on a shelf.

"Do you think it was a school?" Ren wondered.

"Is it how schools look like?"

"You've never been to one?"

"We don't have separate buildings for that in the Southern Tribe. We just all sit on the ground outside when it's sunny or inside when it's snowy."

"I've never been to school either. I was taught by Master Piandao how to read and write, and then his library was my school. The only things I know about schools are what Zuko told me."

For some reason, picturing Zuko at school as a child was really difficult for Sokka. "I bet he was always bullying the other children."

"Mmh, I'm not so sure about that. He's a sweetheart, you just haven't seen that yet."

Sokka rolled his eyes. "Yeah, a _deadly_ sweetheart."

Ren opened a drawer in the desk next to the blackboard. "Oh look! There's chalk!"

Ren took one chalk and gave the other to Sokka, and then started drawing on the blackboard.

"Is that an egg? An egg with eyes? Why is one eye bigger than the other?" Sokka asked.

Ren added a few strokes on top, and then drew a body shape.

"Are you drawing Zuko?" Sokka finally realized.

"Told you he's cute."

"With that haircut? He used to look like an eggplant bud!"

Ren laughed. "Don't you dare criticize that haircut, I loved it!"

"You have a very strange taste in men," Sokka replied, shrugging.

He started drawing stick people too. "This is Dad..." He drew another one with big loops around the head. "This is Katara..." He drew a third one with the same hairstyle, but smaller in height. "And this is Gran-Gran!"

 _Where's your mom?_ Ren was about to ask, but he remembered Katara telling him that she had passed away.

"They need a house now!" Ren started drawing an igloo. He had only seen the village in the South Pole from afar, but he remembered clearly the shape of those funny-looking houses. Sokka added a second one, and then Ren added another, and then Sokka drew his beloved watchtower, and an hour later, the whole blackboard was covered with drawings. The style was childish, but the scale of the artwork was quite impressive.

Ren stepped back and admired their work. He sighed, content, but a pinch of sadness lingered in his heart.

"... I wish I had things to draw about my family. I don't even remember my dad."

Sokka was about to say something, but Ren continued talking. "You know, I think you could become a great artist if you practiced more. The perspective looks great from where I'm standing!"

"Does it?" Sokka joined him. "Oh you're right, it doesn't look too bad! I knew Katara and Aang were just badmouthing me about that poster of Appa I drew in Ba Sing Se!" He went back to the board to add a sky bison flying over the village. He also drew another character next to his self-portrait. "Here, you're part of the village now."

Ren smiled. _So cute!_

Sokka turned around, facing him. "... You don't remember anything about your parents?"

"I know some songs my mom used to sing. Not much else, really."

"Hey, that's something!" Sokka was very intrigued.

Ren noticed the look on his face. "Wanna hear one?"

"Yeah! ... I mean, if you don't mind."

"I don't mind at all," Ren replied, smiling.

([link](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYzOu59W1_U)) He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. An echo rose from the ground, like a shadow emerging from the past, and it took Sokka a few seconds to realize it was Ren's voice. It sounded like the wind, cold and piercing, but also soft and enveloping. The voice bounced off the walls, the ceiling and the tiled floor, changing and deforming as it traveled to Sokka's ears. It harmonized with its own echo, singing in canon the words of a long forgotten language. Ren walked toward the shelf, each step like a hit on a drum, in perfect rhythm. The words became clearer, poem of a language so old even the gods had forgotten it. Ren touched one bell with the tip of a finger, and the metallic sound resonated in the room like a melodious drop of water falling into a cold lake. The bell sound warped around his voice, intertwining with it until they fused together and dissipated like a spiraling wind calming down.

Sokka felt dryness on his tongue and realized his jaw had dropped the second Ren had started singing. And now he was afraid to break the silence, refusing to move until Ren said anything. He felt like he had witnessed something so spiritual, something that no mortal being should ever hear.

"... I know it's kind of weird. You were probably expecting a nursery rhyme or something."

Sokka shook his head frantically. "I had no idea what to expect, and really, you just blew me away, buddy."

Ren blushed. "... You're the first person to hear me sing."

Sokka was floored. "Am I?!"

Ren nodded. "And I'm glad it was you," he added shyly.

_... Spirits!_

Sokka blushed so hard even his ears were red. He couldn't put what he was feeling into words. Thankfully, Katara and Toph arrived before he had to come up with something to say.

"Were did that music come from? Was that you?" Katara asked.

Ren simply nodded.

"It was beautiful!" she said.

The last remnants of the enchanting intensity between Ren and Sokka faded away as the room filled up with normal conversations. Sokka wanted it back, wanted to feel it again, every second of it, again and again and again until the end of time. Ren's gaze crossed his own, and for a moment, just a brief moment, he felt himself drown in an ocean of silver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this chapter so much, I hope you liked it too!
> 
> Ren's song: [link](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYzOu59W1_U)


	30. Chapter 30

Zuko and Aang came back two days later, seemingly rejuvenated. They told their friends that the Sun Warriors were actually still alive and that two of the dragons remained. They demonstrated the new form of firebending the dragons had taught them.

“Nice dance!" Sokka said, certain that it would piss off Zuko.

“It’s not a _dance_!" Zuko yelled back, walking right into Sokka’s trap.

“Ah yeah? Then what is that shiny new technique called?"

Zuko sighed. “... The Dancing Dragon."

They all laughed, making him want to bury himself into the ground. But he felt glad he could at least make them laugh now. He boiled water and made tea for everybody. Ren got up to help him, but Zuko waved his hand, telling him to sit back down. He served his new friends one by one, walking up to each of them, carrying a metal tray like a perfect waiter. Katara even _thanked_ him, for once. He served Sokka last, and sat between him and Ren.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" Sokka asked Zuko, serious. They walked together until they were far enough that the others wouldn't hear them.

"So what's up?" Zuko asked.

"If... someone was captured by the Fire Nation, where would they be taken?"

"What do you mean? Who was captured?"

"When the invasion plan failed, some of our troops were taken. I just wanna know where they might be."

Zuko's expression darkened. "... I can't tell you."

"What, why not?" Sokka asked.

"Trust me. Knowing will just make you feel worse." Zuko turned around, heading back.

Sokka caught his shoulder, stopping him. "It's my dad. He was captured too. I need to know what I put him through."

Zuko turned back. "It's not good, Sokka."

Sokka made puppy eyes. "... Please?"

Zuko sighed, "My guess is... they were taken to the Boiling Rock."

"What's that?"

"The highest-security prison in the Fire Nation. It's on an island in the middle of a boiling lake. It's inescapable."

Sokka crossed his arms over his chest. "So where is this place?"

"Why do you need to know? What are you planning?"

"Nothing. Boy, you're so paranoid!"

"... It's in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation. You guys actually flew right past it on your way here."

Sokka yawned and stretched his back. "Thanks Zuko. Just knowing makes me feel better."

Zuko squinted. "... I'm sure it does."

Of course the following night, Sokka tried to sneak away with Appa.

Zuko was waiting for him on Appa's saddle. "Not up to anything, uh?"

Sokka jumped out in surprise and fell down on his butt. "... Fine. You caught me. I'm gonna rescue my Dad."

"On Appa?" Ren had followed Sokka, and reached to pull him back up.

"As far as I know," Zuko said, "Fire Nation prisons don't have bison daycare."

Sokka slumped. "I have no choice. It's my fault the invasion plan failed. I have to rescue my dad. I have to get my honor back."

Zuko inhaled. The word 'honor' had set a fire inside his heart. "... I'm going with you."

Sokka's eyes widened. "What?"

"We're going to take my war balloon."

Zuko had hidden the hot air ballon he came to the temple with in the forest. He lit the fire up the engine, and Ren helped Sokka climb onto it. Just before departing, Zuko bent over the edge and kissed Ren goodbye. Sokka made a exaggerated gagging sound behind them.

Once the two boys were up in the sky, they tried to have a conversation, but it was so freaking awkward. What do you talk about with your enemy that just turned good?

Zuko was glancing at Sokka, not knowing where to look. Finally, he said something.

"... Sorry to have grossed you out earlier."

Sokka looked at him, dumbfounded. "What?"

"I mean, I understand, I know we're two boys, well... sort of, and it's okay if you think it's gross."

"Who? You and me? What are you talking about?"

Zuko opened his eyes wide. "No, not _you_ and _me_?! I was talking about Ren and me, when we kissed earlier!"

"Spirits! Zuko, you scared me! I thought I had forgotten something horrendous!" He was so relieved. "And it's okay, you didn't gross me out, I was only pretending, just to be annoying."

"So you don't think it's weird?"

"What?"

"Two boys together."

_Oh yeah, Zuko doesn't know how much Ren told me about them._

"Well I'm not at all into guys myself, so I don't really understand, but why would I think it's weird?"

Zuko didn't know what to reply. _Yeah, why would it be weird?_

"Is it wrong in the Fire Nation?" Sokka asked. "I heard some stuff about that being considered shameful in the Earth Kingdom, is it the same where you're from?"

"... Yeah. It's literally outlawed. You can't love someone of the same gender."

"What?! It's in the law?! That's crazy!"

"I know, right?" Zuko sighed in relief. No homophobe to deal with today. Curiosity got the best of him. "How is it in the Water Tribes?"

"I'm not really sure about the Northern Tribe, but looking at how they like to segregate things, it's probably at least frowned upon. In the Southern Tribe we just don't care. Everybody is free to like whoever they want. You've seen how small our village is, if we fought over something like that, our people would tear apart."

 _Ah yeah, the village I attacked._ "I'm sorry again about that."

"That's okay, it's in the past, and nobody got hurt except my pride."

The conversation died down. Sokka's brain worked hard to come up with a new conversation topic.

"So... How long has it been with Ren?"

Zuko's face lit up a little. "It'll be four years soon."

"WHAT?! That long?!"

"We've been apart for some time so it really is just three years."

"That's still amazing!"

Zuko smiled shyly. "What about you? Do you have someone?"

A wave of melancholy crashed Sokka's heart. "I'm not sure if dating is for me," he said. "My first girlfriend turned into the moon."

_Oh._

"... That's rough, buddy."


	31. Chapter 31

"Sokka and Zuko went to hunt for some meat _together_?" Aang and Katara both said at the same time.

Ren nodded frantically, not looking at them.

"Then why didn't you go with them?"

"The less people there are for infiltrati- I mean, hunting missions, the easier it is to sneak up on big game, right?" Ren said, scratching his head. "Plus, it's Sokka and Zuko, it's not like they really need my help."

"I don't know," Aang said, "I pictured you as a sort of knight or something, who would always be protecting Zuko."

Ren blushed really hard, but he was kind of proud that the Avatar had gotten that impression of him. "Zuko gave you some homework by the way, twenty sets of fire fists and ten hot squats every time you hear a badgerfrog croak."

Of course, a badgerfrog croaked right as Ren finished his sentence. Aang sighed and pouted. "Nobody else has homework." He started the squats, counting, "One hot squat, two hot squats, three hot squats..."

Ren felt bad for Aang, so he joined him for training. Squats weren't only for firebenders anyway. Once they were done, Aang suggested a new airbending form, and Ren repeated it several times, but to no avail. Katara was watching him while she stretched and warmed up for her own training session.

"You seem very restrained in your motions. Maybe that's the problem?" she said.

"Yeah!" Aang said. "Try to loosen up! Airbending is about moving as if you are part of the wind, not controlling it."

Ren felt his heart tighten. He inhaled slowly, and repeated the form several more times... and still produced no wind at all. "I really don't understand what I'm doing wrong."

"Maybe that's the problem?" Aang suggested. "Maybe you do it too correctly? Why not try doing it wrong!"

Ren sat down, slouching. "I know this won't work either," he sighed. "I don't even know how to do it wrong!"

"I know waterbending can get a bit uncontrollable when I'm in a bad mood," Katara said, "so maybe you could try that approach?"

Although it was quite the opposite of Aang's teachings by the monks, it was worth giving it a shot.

"What do you hate? What makes you angry?" Katara asked.

"... I don't really know. I'm not the type to get angry."

"Come on, you have to have at least one thing that pisses you off!"

Ren thought for a moment, but couldn't come up with anything.

"What," Katara said, confused, "don't tell me you have nothing to complain about?"

"I... I don't. I'm happy, I have you all, I have Zuko, I have food and a bed... What could I complain about?"

"I don't know, the beds are as hard as rock and everybody has bruised hips because of them? Or the food consists of potato soup for breakfast, lunch and dinner?"

"I don't mind any of this."

"Then what about Zuko? Aren't you still mad at him? At least a little bit?"

"No, he's been through a lot."

"He dumped you like a disposable teacup!"

"No he-"

"He betrayed you, Ren!" Katara raised her voice.

"Katara," Ren tried to calm her down, "please stop."

"What did he do to deserve your unconditional love like that? Don't you deserve better than that?"

"Katara, what are you saying?" Aang tried to interfere.

"He chose his snake of a sister over _you_!" Katara shouted, approaching Ren while kicking the ground loudly.

Ren's blood boiled at the mention of Azula. He yelled "STOP!" and pushed Katara back before she reached him, using the airbending move Aang was trying to teach him. His moves produced a blade-like wind that lacerated her torso. She got violently projected a few meters away, and hit her back against the wall.

"Katara!" Aang and Ren both yelled in horror.

They dashed to reach her. She had lost consciousness. The front of her tunic had been cut opened, but luckily she wasn't bleeding. Aang turned his head away, blushing. Ren checked her pulse, fingers on her wrist, and then carried her to her room.

She woke up a few minutes later. Ren had pinned the cut on her tunic back together, and he was waxing linen thread when she sat up.

"Katara!" he called.

"Ren! What happened?"

"I don't know! I hurt you, and you passed out!"

"Am I hurt?" She slid her hands across her torso, and pricked her finger onto a pin. "Ouch!" She looked at the teared up fabric, confused.

"Sorry!" Ren said, "I was about to sew it back together."

"Did you do that?" Katara opened her eyes wide. "You cut through my clothes?"

"I didn't mean to! I don't know what happened! The wind, it just- it came out like a blade!"

Katara removed one of the pins to check under the fabric. Her skin had a thin red line along the fabric cut, but it wasn't damaged. "I'm... okay?" she said in total confusion.

"Do you have a spare set of clothes? You should change into it," Ren said. "I'll go tell Aang you're fine!"

Katara nodded. _Spirits, what happened? Is that what Ren's capable of?_

He came back a few minutes later, knocking on the door. She had put on a different shirt.

"Sorry I provoked you," she said, and she really meant it. She gave him her teared up tunic.

"No, don't apologize. I'm the one who hurt you. I should have controlled myself. _I_ am sorry." He bowed down, and then he and Katara went back outside.

Aang was sitting down, head resting on his hand, thinking. "I've never seen airbending like this before," he said when his friends came back. Ren picked up his sewing kit and started piecing Katara's tunic together.

"Now that I think of it," Ren said, "I've actually used that type of bending before, although it was on a much smaller scale. That's how I cut my hair in Ba Sing Se."

"Oh yeah, what happened back then?" Katara asked.

"When you both left, Lord Iroh stayed to talk to Zuko. Princess Azula caught us, and the Dai Li imprisoned Lord Iroh inside a crystal, and I got caught mid air by my braid."

"By your braid?!"

Ren nodded. "Yeah. It hurt as bad as it sounds. I didn't have a knife or anything on me so I had to come up with something. I cut my hair off using the side of my hand, and I guess the desperation I felt made it work. I freed Lord Iroh the same way, and then we ran to catch up with Zuko... You know what happened after that."

They all stayed silent, reminiscing the terrible events in Ba Sing Se.

Ren sighed. "To be honest, if that's the only airbending I'm capable of producing, then I prefer not to do it at all."

Aang raised his eyebrows.

"I can do the same with my sabers," Ren continued, "but I have much more control and no risk of hurting anyone without meaning to. If I need to reach farther, I have my bow. I'm still new to archery, but my aim isn't too bad."

"You can't give up already!" Aang blurted out. "You're the only other airbender left! You have to learn airbending!"

"Aang," Ren said, somber, "let's face it, I can't bend like you do."

"But you can't give up! You're meant to airbend, it's in your spirit, it's in your soul and your ancestry-"

Ren cut him off. "I do airbend, Aang! Nomad-style airbending isn't the only airbending!"

Aang slouched, suddenly quiet.

"I do airbend," Ren repeated softly, "the sounds of my steps and the pitch of my voice, the tones of my whistles and the echoes of my screams. I do airbend, Aang, it's just different."

Aang sighed. "... I think I was just happy I had someone I could teach. I’m sorry."

"I have so much to learn from you. But I think our bending styles shouldn't influence each other too much." Ren paused. "Isn't that better anyway? There's only the two of us, I think we should cultivate our differences. One day, when the airbenders' population will have grown back, our descendants will bend differently and compensate for each other's weaknesses."

Aang smiled at the thought of building the airbenders’ population back up. One day, one day for sure! He had felt so much relief when he had realized he wasn’t alone anymore. Ren had brought him a peace of mind he didn’t know he needed.

“There, Katara." Ren showed her her tunic.

“Oh, you’re fast!"

“It’s kind of ugly, though. I can try to cover it up if you’d like."

“What were you thinking of?"

“I can embroider flowers or something, maybe? It would reinforce the fabric."

Katara agreed wholeheartedly. Ren spent the rest of the day decorating the tunic, while Aang, Katara and Toph - who had finally woken up - practiced their bending. Ren would occasionally squat with Aang when badgerfrogs would croak. The two following days looked very similar. There wasn’t a ton of things to do in the temple. Ren had gone back to the classroom, toying with the bells, but he couldn’t stop himself from making them sound super loud and it scared the crap out of Toph every time. They sounded so good, though!

On the evening of the third day, the three friends suddenly panicked when they saw a Fire Nation airship land right in front of the temple. Did the Fire Nation find them already? They hid behind pillars. But as soon as the first passenger stepped on land, Ren recognized the sound of Zuko’s footsteps and darted out of his hiding spot. Zuko and Sokka were back, and they had brought some company!

“Dad!" Katara shouted, and threw herself into the Water Tribe man’s arms. Sokka joined their hug, and they all cried together. Zuko took Ren’s hand, and they smiled at each other. The last person to step out of the airship was a teenage girl with short brown hair, and Ren paused. They both stared at each other for a moment.

"Do you guys know each other?" Sokka asked, glancing back and forth between them.

Ren nodded, squinting. "I'm not sure, but I think we do..."

Sokka laughed. "See, Suki! I'm not the only one struggling to recognize you when you don't have make-up on!"

_Make-up? ... Oh!_

"You were on Kyoshi Island!" Ren realized.

The girl recognized his smile. "I'm _from_ Kyoshi Island! And we met in front of Kyoshi's statue!"

"We did!"

"And you had that pretty doll!"

"I did!"

Ren was so happy to meet her again. He didn't really know why, but he grew very fond of that particular memory. Sokka glanced back and forth between them, confused but happy that his two bestest friends got along.

Ren was about to start the dinner preparation with Katara's help when the airship arrived, so he went to get some more food. When he came back, everybody was sitting around the bonfire, chatting away. Katara, Aang and Suki were peeling potatoes. Sokka was looking at Katara's tunic, now covered in white wild flowers.

"What happened to her tunic?" He asked Ren.

"Hum, airbending accident. I kinda cut through it, so I repaired it and added flowers for strength."

Sokka was confused about the 'adding flowers for strength' part, but instead of asking about it, he paused. "Wait. You cut through her tunic? Was she wearing it?"

"Hum, yeah. She was. But don't worry, she didn't get hurt!"

"So you saw my sister's _boobs_?!" Sokka had raised his voice enough that now everybody was listening.

Ren panicked. "Sokka, I'm _gay_!" He blurted. "I don't care! I like boys!"

He covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he had said. He wanted to disappear so bad, but he felt a hand sliding in his own and making him sit down. Zuko was looking at him with comforting eyes, although he looked a bit worried too.

"Sokka, drop it," Katara said calmly. "It doesn't matter."

"... Okay. I thought you'd be mad." Sokka sat back down, ashamed that he had caused such a fuss.

"I'm not. Don't worry." She patted his arm.

Suki was glancing at Ren, a bit confused and not sure of why nobody said anything about the 'being gay' part. _Are they okay with that?_

An awkward silence ran through the group. Sokka's brain worked hard once again to come up with a conversation topic. Suddenly, an idea popped up in his mind.

“So glad Zuko’s ex-girlfriend helped us run away!" he said, sincerely happy.

Ren squinted, glaring at Zuko in complete confusion.

_Zuko's what._

The prince panicked. “It’s not what you think it is!"


	32. Chapter 32

"So what is it, then?" Ren had pulled Zuko to their room. They could still hear their friends' chatter, so he closed the door firmly and blocked the sound.

"How do you do that?" Zuko asked, genuinely curious.

"The soundproofing?" Ren said. "It's kinda hard to explain, but I airbend against the surface of the walls and it cuts off the sound. As long as the walls are intact, it's really easy to do. It doesn't work properly if there's a hole, so that's why I needed to cover the window, even though nobody will see us from here."

"Oh! Is that the technique you used on the ship back then? And why suddenly the room wasn't soundproof anymore?"

"Yeah, you broke the door lock and the tiny hole was enough to make this technique unusable."

Zuko blushed, remembering that time his uncle had seen him butt hanging in the air.

"I can block the sound without walls," Ren explained, "but only in a small area, and not for longer than a few seconds... but anyways," he looked straight at Zuko, "what's up with that _girlfriend_ of yours?"

Zuko scratched his head. "Yeah, I kinda forgot to talk to you about that." Ren's expression darkened so bad Zuko panicked. "No, I mean, I didn't cheat on you! She wasn't really my girlfriend!"

Ren raised his eyebrows. "I'm so confused!"

"Okay, you know what, let's sit down," Zuko said.

They sat on the bed next to each other.

"She's called Mai, and she's my sister's best friend," the prince explained.

Ren winced at the mention of Azula.

"She's also my friend," Zuko continued. "And she's the only one who knows that I like boys."

"I realize we never really talked about that, right?" Ren said. "About liking boys, I mean. I wasn't sure if you only were into me or... I don't know."

Zuko smirked. "Surely you must have figured out by now that I love dick, don't you?"

Ren snorted.

"Yeah, I'm definitely into boys," Zuko said. "I don't care about girls, never cared, never will."

Ren grabbed Zuko's hand and squeezed softly. "I'm the same."

"But can you imagine the scandal it would cause if people knew about it? I'm just a banished prince, but I'm still a member of the royal family!"

Ren nodded, knowing full well how bad it could be.

"So yeah, Mai knew and she was surprisingly chill about it. Her parents were pestering her about her non-interest in boys, and my sister was starting to suspect a thing about me, so we formed an alliance..." Zuko looked cautiously at Ren, "... and pretended we were dating."

"Is she lesbian?"

"I don't think she is. She's just not interested in anybody, really."

"But if she's your sister's friend, isn't she younger than us?"

"She's fifteen."

"And her parents are already bothering her about dating?" Ren shook his head slowly. "Poor girl."

Zuko looked down, nodding. "Yeah, it sucks." He looked at Ren. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."

Ren put a peck on his lips. "That's okay, you didn't do anything wrong. There's a ton of potatoes to peel, we should go back to help."

He stood up, but Zuko held his hand back. "... I'm sorry I'm always away from you," he said.

Ren hugged him, and Zuko rested his head against his stomach. Eyes closed, he rubbed Ren's back, feeling his small frame. Ren was _tiny_. Even when they started dating and they were the same height, Ren was by far the thinnest of the two. And now he was much smaller than Zuko. Having him wrapped in his arms, Zuko felt like he could break him in half if he wasn't careful. And yet he knew for a fact that Ren would kick his ass so hard in a sword duel that he had nothing to worry about. Zuko let his mind wander for a second, wondering how it would end up if both he and Ren went all out in a real battle against each other. Zuko had good reasons to be proud of his firebending and his sword fighting, but he wouldn't dare to be too confident facing Ren, especially now that Ren wasn't repressing his bending abilities anymore. Zuko realized he had no idea what Ren was really capable of.

Ren's hands had landed on his head, fingers running against his scalp. Zuko hummed in satisfaction, although it didn't feel as good as it used to. "Never thought I would say that, but I kinda miss being bald, just for the sensations," he mumbled against Ren's belly.

"I know you still won't believe me, but you looked fucking gorgeous that way," Ren said.

"You really have weird taste," Zuko said, chuckling. Ren made him look up, pulling lightly at his hair, and kissed him passionately. Having his fist full of Zuko's soft hair was definitely a thing he could get used to, and Zuko looked like he appreciated it at least as much.

A loud gargling noise came out of Ren's stomach. Zuko chuckled, "let's go eat something." They spent the rest of the night together with their friends, the Water Tribe chief Hakoda telling embarrassing stories about Sokka and Katara's childhood while everyone laughed.

Very early the next morning, Ren woke up to hands running under his shirt and a horny boy wiggling against his backside. What a bliss to wake up to! He took his lover's hands and placed one on his chest and the other down in his pants. Zuko squished his pec and played with his nipple. Ren's chest wasn't sensitive at all, but he was in the mood for that, so he played along. He reached behind and grabbed Zuko's hip, pushing his butt against Zuko's morning boner. He rocked his hips back and forth, whining softly while Zuko sucked on his neck. The prince's hand was working up and down Ren's hardening dick, fingers rubbing against the tip some times, going further down the balls other times. A new idea lit up in Ren's foggy mind. He pulled down both of their underwear, and let Zuko's dick slide between his butt cheeks. Zuko grabbed his face and turned him around just enough that they could kiss, while he thrusted himself between Ren's thighs. It felt _hot_. Hotter than usual, hot even by firebender standards. The room filled up with skin-on-skin claps, sleepy grunts and a panel of wet sticky sounds. Ren felt like he was going to melt. Zuko had picked up a punishing pace stroking his dick, their kiss getting sloppier and more feverous with every breath.

Zuko brought Ren right on the edge, and as he felt himself almost tip over, the ground shook hard. They both opened their eyes, not sure of if they really had felt it, but Ren cut off the soundproofing and their doubts were confirmed. They heard their friends shout and rocks fall down, and something hit the temple, producing a similar ground shake. They shuffled around and put clothes on as fast as they could, then ran outside.

Three huge Fire Nation airships were launching bombs on the temple. Aang was closing the protection doors right as Ren and Zuko stepped outside.

"Wait!" Zuko shouted, "I think this is a family visit!"

He dashed outside just before Aang had closed the doors completely. An airship came lower, revealing the princess of the Fire Nation on top of its roof.

"What are you doing here?!" Zuko shouted at his sister.

"Don't you see? I'm about to celebrate becoming an _only child_!" Azula screamed, and jumped from the airship to the ground, attacking Zuko, aiming right for the head.

They fought for a while, Zuko dissipating Azula's fire bolts with ease. Something was wrong with his sister, she wasn't like the usual. They had jumped onto another airship, Zuko dodging and dissipating blue fire bolts without too much difficulty. A large piece of the temple broke down and fell onto the airship they were fighting on, tipping it over and pushing both of them over the edge. Zuko saw his sister fall into the fog, right as he was himself picked up by Ren on Appa's back.

"She's not gonna make it..." he said, but of course she would. She propelled herself, throwing blue flames out of her knuckles, and climbed onto a ledge, using her royal hairpiece to stab into the rock. Zuko saw her shadow disappear behind the fog as he fled away with all of his friends on the Avatar's flying bison.

"Wait, Sokka! Where's your dad?" he asked once they were far enough from the temple.

"Dad's going another route. He ran to the airship we stole. He's gonna be okay."

Katara looked particularly grumpy, and for good reasons. It had been less than twenty-four hours since she had finally reunited with her father, only to be separated again so soon. Sokka patted her back, but he only got a shove in response.

"Where could we go?" Aang asked everybody.

"I've got an idea," Zuko replied.

They landed a few hours later on a small island with fancy houses and a tiny but luxurious village. There was a huge courtyard inside one of the biggest villas where they could hide Appa. The red roofs were decorated with golden details, and the stone garden was a work of art.

"What is this place?" Ren asked, eyes sparkling.

Zuko opened the front door of the courtyard, revealing a gorgeous view of the beach. "Welcome to Ember Island... also known as the Fire Nation royal family's private vacation spot!"


	33. Chapter 33

"BEACH PARTY!!!" Sokka ran while stripping down to his underwear and jumped into the water like an ungraceful goatwhale.

It was the beginning of the sixth month and the weather was gorgeous. It was hot, but not too mushy already. The rainy season would start after the summer solstice, soaking everything down until the temperature rose enough that even rocks would feel like melting lava.

 _Summer in the Fire Nation? Probably not something a Water Tribe boy would survive._ Zuko smirked, and dove into the water, catching up with Sokka. The Water Tribe boy noticed him and turned around, water shallow enough that he could stand on his toes. He waved both of his arms around, trying to splash the prince. Zuko dove down to avoid Sokka, and tackled him in the water, making him fall.

"You jerk!" Sokka yelled once he swam back up.

Zuko laughed and splashed him. "No you!"

They fought for a while like this. Ren had found a sun umbrella in the courtyard and planted it on the beach. Toph and Aang started building sandcastles. Katara was training for waterbending. Suki didn't really know where to fit. Ren noticed her, and patted the sand next to him, inviting her to sit down.

"Not fond of the sun, are you?" she asked, trying to find a conversation topic.

"Yeah no, with how pale I am, I burn almost instantly," he said, smiling shyly.

"And Zuko doesn't? He's not much darker than you, isn't he?"

"Agni would never hurt their own son."

Suki glanced at Ren, not understanding a single word of what he had just said. Ren looked away, blushing.

"Hum... I mean... You know... He's royalty, so uh, in the Fire Nation we believe the royal family descend from the sun... which, uh, we call 'Agni'..."

"Oh sorry, I didn't realize you were Fire Nation! Sokka told me you were an airbender, so for some reason I thought you'd be an Air Nomad like Aang!"

Ren frowned. _Maybe I should tell Sokka not to tell everyone about that._

Suki was waiting for Ren to talk, but he didn't say anything. It was... awkward, to say the least. She cleared her throat, and tried to come up with something else.

"So hum, funny how we meet again. Do you still have that doll?" she asked.

"No. It burned when the ship exploded."

"When the ship _what_?!" she looked at Ren, eyes wide open.

He sighed, not sure if he should tell the whole thing. "Yeah. It's a long story."

"Well I've got some time, if you don't mind sharing."

So Ren shared his story. He explained the whole rivalry between Zuko and Zhao, and then Suki asked why he himself was on the ship, so he had to go back to the very beginning of their journey, up until they found the Avatar.

"So then we got to Kyoshi Island..." he said.

"... and that's where we met, right?" she finished his sentence.

Ren smiled. "Yeah."

"So you were with Zuko all this time? Wow. If I had known, you'd be dead on the spot."

"I know," he snorted. "I knew it from the second I saw you."

"At least you didn't burn down our village..." she sighed.

"You have every right to be mad at Zuko, I completely respect that."

"I'm not mad. Now I know why he did it. And it seems like Sokka forgave him, so I'll trust his judgement."

Ren desperately wanted to ask something, and it could easily be guessed by looking at his face.

"Wanna know if there's something between Sokka and I?" Suki asked before Ren blurted the question himself.

He simply nodded.

"It wasn't super clear before, but I think now I can say I'm his girlfriend," she said.

"Oh. O-okay. I thought you were- never mind." There was an awkward silence, and then Ren inhaled. "I had a different vibe coming from you, that's why I'm surprised."

"A differente vibe?"

"Yeah, like you wouldn't be into Sokka. Or into boys-"

Ren and Suki felt the ground shake and something lifted them up in the air. They got projected into the water, not far from where Zuko and Sokka were still wrestling. They landed in a huge splash, as gracefully as elephantcows. Toph and Aang were laughing madly on the shore. Zuko swam up to Ren and pulled him up.

"What did I do to deserve that?" Ren grumbled while spitting out the sea water he had swallowed.

Sokka went to Suki, but she was fine, although completely drenched. She laughed it off, and began climbing on Sokka's shoulders to try to make him loose his balance.

Ren was quite a terrible swimmer. He clung to Zuko until they were close enough to the shore that the water only reached his chest.

"Are you okay?" Zuko asked, worried by the paleness of Ren's face.

"Yeah, I just got a bad flashback for a second."

Zuko cupped Ren's face, and put a peck on his lips. Sokka was calling for help behind him, so he swam back to join his friend in the fight. Suki was ruthless! Ren let the water carry him, half floating. The ocean was warm and it felt cosy. It reminded him of the bathtub in their room on the ship. _Feels like it was a lifetime ago._

Time flew by. What felt like at least two hours later, they all got back to the house. Suki's and Ren's clothes were still completely wet, while Sokka, Zuko and Katara didn't even bother putting theirs back on. The sun was high in the sky and it was quite hot.

"Zuko, this house must have a bath, right?" Ren asked. "How big is it?"

Zuko grinned. "Big enough for ten people! It's down the hallway on the left."

Ren beamed. He took Sokka's and Aang's elbow, one in each arm, and rushed them inside towards the bathroom.

"Where are you going?!" Sokka yelped. "I'm not taking a bath with you!"

"Come on, Sokka, you have to wash up all that salt!" Ren replied with a grin, tightening his grip.

Zuko shoved Sokka from behind. "Come on, buddy!"

"In the Fire Nation, do as Fire Nation people," Aang even added. "My friend Kuzon loved to take me to the public bathhouse in the old days!"

"What? Do every Fire Nation dude bathe with their friends?" Sokka asked, repulsed.

"Yeah!" His three friends replied in unison.

The girls heard Sokka's yelps from the courtyard.


	34. Chapter 34

"Sokka, come on, strip!"

Ren had stripped and pulled down his pants right in front of Sokka, without any mercy for his poor virgin eyes. Sokka turned around, steam coming out of his ears, and saw Zuko stark naked too. Aang was nicely folding his pants on the bench, as naked as a newborn baby. Sokka covered his eyes with both hands. _I'm gonna die today._

Zuko turned on the tap, and water started filling up the huge bath. He also filled up four basins and heated them up.

"Wow, how does this work?" Aang was pointing the tap with his finger, ecstatic. Back in the days, there was no such technology.

"I don't know, you just twist that thing and clear water comes out," Zuko said. "It's in most Fire Nation homes, I think."

"Only rich homes," Ren added, "Master Piandao was the only one in the village to have it. That one fills up so much faster though!"

Ren and Zuko sat next to each other on tiny stools next to the bathtub, using a fluffy sponge to foam up the soap. They scrubbed themselves off with utmost care and washed their hair thoroughly. Aang followed their example.

"I have to concede, it's much easier with shorter hair," Ren told Zuko.

"It'll grow back faster than you think," Zuko told him, raising his hand to rinse off a bit of foam Ren had left on the back of his head.

"Or you could get rid of it entirely!" Aang said jokingly, but kind of hopeful that Ren would say yes. There was still somewhere in Aang's heart a glimpse of hope that Ren would be interested in learning the Air Nomads traditions. But of course Ren would never say yes, hair was sacred in the Fire Nation, he would be changing his entire identity.

Sokka was still slowly undressing, making sure to hide as much of his body as possible with his two hands. Yes, he was only wearing his underwear, but removing it required surgical precision. He finally managed to sit on a stool, legs crossed tightly, and began washing himself too. He didn't know where to look, and of course his eyes landed on Ren's dick right as his friend stood to rinse himself off. Sokka turned almost purple. Ren noticed, and suppressed a smirk.

He entered the bath first, but hissed, "It's COLD!"

Zuko got up and plunged his hands in the water to warm it up. It took only a few seconds, and then steam was filling up the entire room and Ren was sighing with satisfaction. Zuko rinsed himself off and joined him, sitting by his side. Ren took a quick glance at Sokka and Aang, and as he saw they were both facing away from the bath, he allowed himself to rest his head on Zuko's shoulder.

Public demonstrations of affection were quite normal in the Fire Nation, but only between boys and girls. Zuko and Ren had no hope that they would be one day able to kiss in public. Even holding hands was out of the question. As they spent their days with the Gaang, they got used to the freedom of hugging or holding hands or even discreetly kissing whenever they wanted. After all, Ren had introduced himself to the group as 'Zuko's boyfriend', back in the Western Air Temple, so there was no point in hiding. But they still held back, as they were both afraid their friends would see it as excessive. They weren't sure where the limit was. Sokka had made known to both of them that he didn't care at all. Aang and Toph didn't seem to care one bit about their relationship. Katara hated Zuko so her opinion was kind of hard to figure out. Suki... was from the Earth Kingdom, so that could be a problem. Yeah. Suki would definitely disapprove.

When Aang stood up, Ren lifted his head back up and moved a little farther from Zuko.

"Oh, it's really hot!" Aang hissed when he put his leg into the bathtub.

 _It's not the only hot thing in this room_ , Sokka definitely didn't think.

Aang went in slowly, allowing his body to get used to the warmth. Sokka was washing his hair, taking extra care to go as slowly as possible, so that maybe his friends would get bored and come out of the bathroom before he went into the tub. But a quick glance at Ren, who was resting his head on the edge of the tub with an air of utmost satisfaction on his face, told him there would be no such chance. He would have to get up and go in. Sokka inhaled slowly, stood up, one hand hiding the front, the other hand hiding the back, and tiptoed near the tub. He lifted one leg, and his eyes met Zuko's, who was shamelessly judging him very hard, raising his only eyebrow.

"Hey Sokka... We've all seen dicks already. No need to hide," he said.

"Well I personally have never seen any dick expect my own, and I intend it to stay that way!"

Ren chuckled. "That's not true, I've seen you looking at mine earlier!"

Sokka yelped in embarrassment. He put his toe into the water, and yelped a second time. "Why is it so hot!!! Are you guys crazy?!"

Zuko snorted. "I knew it! He can't take the heat! Ren, I told you!"

Ren pouted. "Fine. You win."

"Did you guys bet on me?!" Sokka couldn't believe it. "I am _offended_!"

Aang splashed him with the hot water. "Come on, get in!"

Sokka took a step back, trying to avoid the splash, and almost slipped. He grabbed the edge of the bath with both hands before he fell down.

"See, now you've got your dick out!" Ren laughed.

Sokka wanted to die. He finally slowly stepped into the tub, and sat down, sulking in silence. Aang was asking questions about the Fire Nation bathing culture. Ren's cheeks and nose were bright red from the heat, and he was talking with a smile, eyes going back and forth between Aang and Zuko. _He's so damn cute._ Zuko had pushed his wet hair back, and was resting his head against his hand, elbow on the edge of the bath, his bulging arm muscles covered in glistening water droplets. _He's so fucking gorgeous too._

Sokka lowered his head and blew into the water, making bubbles. Ren noticed him, and there was so much affection and softness and... love? Was it love? in his eyes that Sokka melted into a puddle of soapy water. _What the fuck with you! You shouldn't be looking at me like that!_

Zuko glanced at Sokka, and then at Ren, and smiled softly while pushing away a strand of hair on his lover's forehead. _Shouldn't you be jealous? What's wrong with you too!_

Aang was rambling about his trip to the Fire Nation from when he was younger, a hundred years ago. His friend Kuzon this, and his friend Kuzon that, and blah blah blah. Frankly, even Ren had lost track of his story, so he just nodded and said "mmh" whenever Aang paused in his sentence.

"I can't take it anymore, I'm coming out!" Sokka suddenly stood up, and got out as fast as he could. He put on his clothes and left without a glance at his friends.

_Sokka, my dear Sokka, what are you even thinking?! You like girls, you enjoy girls, girls are the best, you love them. Boys are NOT pretty. Boys cannot be pretty. That's just not an option. You have Suki! Go kiss Suki for a while, it'll shake these stupid ideas out of your stupid mind!_

Ren, Zuko and Aang came out of the bath a while later. Zuko found some old summer clothes in a closet, and lent Ren and Aang outfits that he used to wear. They didn't fit him in size anymore, so he had to put on, loathing, some of his father's clothes.

"It feels weird wearing something so bright," Ren said when he came out of the house, hands hidden inside long sleeves.

Zuko blinked slowly. Ren was wearing one of his favorite robes, made out of bright red silk with a golden trim on the bottom and black detailing over the chest. He had tucked the sides of his damp hair behind his ears. Zuko almost heard the thumping of his own heart, so loud and strong it felt like it would come out of his ribcage.

"Ah... It suits you" is all he managed to say while his brain was screaming 'OH AGNI YOU'RE THE MOST GORGEOUS HUMAN BEING IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE PLEASE MARRY ME'. He cleared his throat and looked away, trying to calm down, clenching and opening his fists as a way to think about something else.

"Thanks," Ren said softly, and went to help Aang carry all their luggage inside.

The Fire Lord's vacation villa had a very different style of architecture from the usual Fire Nation house. It was made of wood and the roof hung away from the wall, offering a lot of shade. The floor was covered in rice mats that felt soft under bare feet. The whole house was surprisingly cosy. Sliding paper screens separated the different rooms, and they could all be left open to make one huge room in the center of the house. There was a separate set of wooden sliding doors on the outside, that could cover all of the walls in case of a typhoon. Typhoons were very common during the fall season in the Fire Nation, so most households had special protections against them. But it was the first time Ren saw a house with a built-in typhoon shield.

The sun was setting, and they were all quite hungry, so Suki, Aang, Sokka and Zuko prepared dinner while Ren and Katara made beds for everybody. Zuko had assigned everybody's bed earlier in the day. Aang and Sokka would sleep in his sister's bed, Katara, Suki and Toph would sleep in his father's bed because it was the biggest, and he and Ren would sleep in his own bed. Frankly, nobody was thrilled by the idea of sleeping in their enemies' beds, but they had been sleeping outside for months at this point, and they would never say 'no' to a fluffy mattress with clean bedsheets.

During dinner, Sokka held a toast to Zuko, congratulating him on turning good and stuff. "Who knew after all this times he tried to snuff us out, today he'd be our hero?"

Everyone clapped except Katara.

"I don't deserve this," Zuko said, touched.

"Yeah, no kidding," Katara said, glaring at him. She stood up and left.

Sokka scratched his head. "What's up with her?"

"I wish I knew," Zuko replied before he went after her.

He found Katara sitting on a rock on the beach, sulking. She glanced at him, and looked back at the sea, ignoring him.

"This isn't fair," he said. "Everyone else seems to trust me now. What is it with you?"

"Oh, everyone trusts you now?" Katara erupted. " _I_ was the first person to trust you, remember? Back in Ba Sing Se! And you turned around and betrayed me. Betrayed all of us!"

Zuko looked down. "What can I do to make it up for you?" he asked softly.

"You really want to know?" Katara raised her voice. "Hmm, maybe you could reconquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King! Or, I know! You could bring my _mother_ back!"

She walked past him, knocking his shoulder with no remorse. Zuko stayed there for a while, silent.

At night, when Ren kissed him and tugged on his tunic, Zuko shook his head and gently pushed him away. He went outside to get some fresh air. Katara's words had been spinning in his mind for hours. He paused once he walked into the courtyard. There was a tent set up right in the middle of it. Zuko scratched his head in confusion. He turned around and noticed Suki tiptoeing in the tent's direction.

"Is it Sokka's tent? Are you here to talk to him?" he said.

"Uh... Nope! Not me!" She fled inside the house instead.

Even more confused, Zuko slid inside the tent.

Sokka turned around, hair down, a rose between his lips. "Well... Hello, pretty lady!" he glamorously said before realizing he was in fact talking to Zuko instead of Suki. He almost swallowed the whole rose down. Zuko cringed super hard, but sat down without any comment. Sokka mentally thanked him for that. "Uh, Zuko, haha, yes, why would I be expecting anyone different?" He coughed a little. "So what's on your mind?"

"Your sister. She hates me, and I don't know why. But I do care what she thinks of me."

Sokka waved his hand. "Nah, she doesn't hate you. Katara doesn't hate anyone. Except maybe some people in the Fire Nation." Zuko slouched. "No! I mean! Uh! Not people who are good but used to be bad! I mean, bad people. Fire Nation people who are still bad, who've never been good, and probably won't be ever-"

"Stop." Zuko interrupted him. "Okay, listen... I know this may seem out of nowhere but I want you to tell me what happened to your mother. I think somehow Katara's connected her anger about that to her anger at me."

Sokka's face darkened. "It's not a day I like to remember." He told Zuko about that day where black snow fell onto his village in the South Pole. Fire Nation raiders came into the village and searched every house until they found what they were looking for. Sokka was trying his best to protect the younger children, and it wasn't until he came back home that he learnt what happened. Their mother had sacrificed herself to protect the village and her children. She had been killed on the spot. "And as quickly as they came, they just left."

Zuko frowned. "Wait, can you remember any details about the soldiers who raided your village? Like what the lead ship looked like?"

Sokka thought for a while. "Yeah... Sea ravens. The main ship had flags with sea ravens on them."

"The symbol of the southern raiders! Thanks, Sokka."

"Noooo problem!" Sokka said, pushing Zuko out of the tent. "Thanks for stopping by!" he sighed and said "thought he'd never leave!" out loud. He then opened the tent just enough to push his head out and called for Suki, whistling. Zuko was standing two meters away, and rubbed his face to contain his cringe. He left without a word, went back to his bed where Ren was sound asleep.

The next day, Katara ran into Zuko when she got out of her bedroom. She walked past him without saying anything.

"I've been waiting for you for hours." Zuko said with a sleepy voice.

"What do you want?" she asked without wanting to know.

"I know who killed your mother," Zuko said, and he saw Katara's face light up. "I'm going to help you find him."

***

Katara and Zuko walked into the courtyard dressed in black, carrying small backpacks. Aang was feeding Appa, and Sokka and Ren were sparring.

"I need to borrow Appa." Katara told Aang.

"Why, is it your turn to take a little field trip with Zuko?"

"Yes. It is."

Ren and Sokka both stopped what they were doing. Aang turned back, confused. "Oh... What's going on?"

Katara replied with a cold voice. "We're going to find the man who took my mother from me."

"Um, and what exactly do you think this will accomplish?"

Katara scoffed. "I knew you wouldn't understand." She started walking back to the house.

"Wait, stop! I do understand! You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt about the sandbenders when they stole Appa and we couldn't find him for months? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out they killed the entirety of my people?"

Zuko interfered. "She needs this, Aang. This is about getting closure and justice."

"I don't think so. I think it's about getting revenge."

"Fine!" Katara raised her voice. "Maybe it is! Maybe that's what I need. Maybe that's what he deserves."

"Katara, you sound like Jet," Aang said.

Ren's ears perked up when he heard the familiar name.

"It's not the same," Katara said. "Jet attacked the innocent. This man, he's a monster."

"Katara, the monks used to say that revenge is like a two-headed ratviper. While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself."

"That's cute," Zuko said, "but this isn't air temple preschool. It's the real world."

"Now that I know he's out there," Katara said, "now that I know we can find him... I feel like I have no choice."

"Katara, you do have a choice. Forgiveness."

"That's the same as doing nothing!"

"No it's not. It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive."

"It's not just hard, it's impossible." She climbed on Appa's head and took the reigns.

"So you're just gonna take Appa anyway?" Aang opened his eyes wide.

Katara turned back and looked at him dead in the eyes. "Yes."

He sighed and said "it's okay, because I forgive you. Hope it gives you some idea!"

Zuko climbed on the saddle, nodded at Ren before turning back, and as they took off, Aang shouted "please don't choose revenge!" at them. Ren waved them goodbye. Aang sighed, and went inside.

“I’m kinda surprised you’re letting Zuko go on trips with everyone," Sokka told Ren. "I thought you’d want to go with him."

“I think it’s his way of apologizing to each of you. It wouldn’t be proper if I was there."

“I hope he apologized to you too, that dumbass jerkbender! Hope he at least kneeled down!"

Ren smirked. “Oh don’t worry about that, he blew me so good I almost passed out!"

Sokka choked on his own saliva. "I didn't need to know that!!!" he yelped between coughs.

Ren laughed out loud, patting his friend's back. Embarrassing Sokka was way too much fun!


	35. Chapter 35

"So, uh, Aang said something about a person named 'Jet', right?"

Ren and Sokka were having tea, and Sokka almost spilled his cup on himself when he heard Jet's name.

"Why are you asking? Do you know him?"

"Uh, yeah, I know a Jet, but I don't know if it's the same Jet as yours."

"Tall guy, brown hair, super cocky, chews on a wheat sheaf at all times, fights with hook swords?"

Ren's face lit up more and more at each of Sokka's words. "That's him!"

"Why do you look so happy? Don't tell me you like that guy?!"

"You don't? What's wrong with him?"

Sokka proceeded to tell Ren the whole story. Not long after Aang, Sokka and Katara had left the South Pole, they came across a gang of kids living in a maple forest, led by that guy named Jet. At first, he left a good impression on everybody. Sokka hinted at Katara having a crush on him. But then, Jet realized Aang wasn't going to help him kill Fire Nation civilians, so he tricked him and Katara into helping break a dam to flood and drown an entire Fire Nation colonial town.

"... Mmh, sounds like something Jet would do," Ren nodded.

"And then we met the guy a second time, in Ba Sing Se!" Sokka gestured in the air.

The Gaang met Jet again when they were fighting the Dai Li, trying to get Appa back. He had been brainwashed and couldn't control himself anymore. The Dai Li forced Jet to fight Aang until he got crushed by a rock.

Sokka finished his story nonchalantly, and was quite surprised when he saw the horror on Ren's face. He didn't expect so much empathy for the douchebag.

"... I've lived with the Freedom Fighters for three months, Sokka. I'm close with all of them." Ren said, his voice trembling a bit. "Longshot taught me archery. I cooked Smellerbee her favorite meal so many times." He smiled softly at the memory. "Jet used to help me peel forest onions for the soup. We would cry our eyes out together because it stung so bad." Ren let one sad laugh come through his mouth, and then gulped and stopped talking entirely.

Sokka didn't know what to say. Fortunately, Toph and Suki came out of their bedroom right before the silence became too awkward.

"Hi guys!" Toph said while punching Ren's arm as a greeting. Suki kissed Sokka on the cheek as a 'hello'. Ren shook his head a little, put a smile on his face, and looked at the two girls with kindness.

"Hey Suki!" Sokka called her as if she wasn't twenty centimeters away from him, "have you thought about my date idea?"

"Are you guys going on a date?" Toph asked before Suki had the chance to speak.

"Yes," Suki said, "and no you're not invited!"

Toph pouted. "But what are you even gonna do? Walk around town? That's it? You don't even have enough money for tea. You're both broke!"

To that, Sokka wanted to answer that he had a plan, but the truth was that he didn't have any. So he just sulked, crossing his arms. Suki laughed lightly. "It's okay, it's fine if we just look around."

"Well _I_ have some money," Ren said. Sokka lit up, but froze when he saw the smirk on Ren's face. "What about a double date?" Ren suggested. "Me and Toph, you and Suki!"

Toph yelled 'woohoo' while throwing her fist in the air. Suki joined her, while Sokka glared at Ren. But really, it was just for show and he was actually really happy about the conversation's outcome.

They went to the little town near by. It was a very nice village with a fountain in the middle and souvenir shops laid all around. They walked into one of those shops after a stall full of fans caught Suki's attention.

"She uses that for fighting," Sokka whispered to Ren.

Ren remembered that she indeed had pointed a fan at him when they had met in front of Kyoshi's statue. Suki was buzzing all around the shop, stars in her eyes.

"Look, Sokka!" She pointed at some wooden fan. "This one is so pretty!"

"We have several models of wooden fans, young lady," the vendor said. "Let me fetch some more in the back!"

He came back with a large box of wooden fans, each one having a different engraved pattern. Ren was looking over Suki's shoulders, full of curiosity. She took one in her hand, opened it and closed it with a quick snap of the wrist, and then placed it back in the box. She tried out several fans like this, and when she finally found two that she liked, she looked at Ren with puppy eyes, not really sure how to ask him to buy them for her.

Ren snorted. "I'll buy them if you teach me!" he said with a smile.

Suki's face lit up. "Then we have to get you some too! Try them out!"

She showed him how to flick his wrist to open and close the fan fast. He didn't really know what he was doing, but once he tried opening one specific fan and it just opened almost by itself as if it was a wing, he knew this was what he was looking for. Soon after, he found a second one that gave him the same sensation.

The vendor were looking at them trying all his fans. At first he was kind of confused, but when he saw Suki's eyes so full of love for fans, he sighed, serene, and thought ' _there are still young people interested in art, after all_ '. When Ren asked him how much it would be for four fans, the vendor gave him a discount and wrapped the fans in a pretty paper bag. Ren and Suki then finally joined Sokka and Toph, who had walked out and were chatting near the fountain outside the shop.

"How can it take an HOUR to choose a fan?" Sokka complained.

"This is the worst date ever," Toph said.

Back at the villa, Aang walked into the courtyard and scratched his head. "Where are you guys?" he asked, but no one replied.


	36. Chapter 36

The four friends wandered through the town some more, Ren buying food and spices for dinner. It felt like an entire month had passed since he last ate something properly seasoned, and he craved the delicious summer spices. When he saw the concerned look on Sokka's face, he swore that he would use them with a very light hand.

At the market, Sokka haggled with the meat vendor, only to get shooed away. The Water Tribe manners were definitely not fitting with the Fire Nation's customs.

"Sokka, the meat wasn't that expensive to begin with," Suki scolded him. Ren and Toph had gone back to buy some pork, apologizing on behalf of their friend. The meat vendor was fuming, but still accepted their money.

"Fine! I'm just trying, okay!" Sokka stomped on the ground, crossed his arm and leaned against the wall behind him.

Seeing that there was nothing she could do to lighten up his mood, Suki walked back to the market. As she took a last glance at Sokka, who was heading back to the villa, she ran into two middle-aged men. Furious, the two men shoved her and pushed her around.

"Look where you're stepping, you bitch!" one growled.

"Girls should behave better than this! I'll teach you a lesson real quick!" the other hissed.

They stood one in front of her, the other behind, and slowly walked closer, mumbling gross things as they stepped forward.

"Suki!" Ren shouted from afar.

Both men suddenly grasped their ears, as if Ren's voice was piercing their eardrums. A second later, Ren grabbed Suki's hand and ran with her to the other side of the market. They hid behind a fruit stall.

"Thank you!" Suki said to Ren, then noticed he was smiling, lost in his thoughts. She silently questioned him with a head tilt.

"Sorry, I shouldn't be smiling," he said, "it's just this whole hiding-behind-a-stall situation, it brought up an old memory."

"I'm glad it's a happy one," Suki said gently.

"Mmh, maybe 'happy' isn't the word for it," Ren rectified, "but it definitely had good repercussions."

"What are you doing here?!" the fruit vendor inquired.

Ren jumped to his feet. "Sorry sir! Can I get ten peaches? and a lemon!"

The vendor blinked, and then said "sure" and proceeded to put the fruits in a paper bag. Ren pulled Suki up and they walked away as if nothing had happened. They met back with Toph, and finished buying all the food they would need for the rest of the week.

Back at the villa, Suki unwrapped the groceries, and then their beautiful brand new fans. "Oh!" she exclaimed. She took out a small metal box. It was very pretty, and had a flower pattern engraved on it.

"What is it?" Ren asked.

Suki unscrewed the lid. "It's rouge! It's make-up!" The souvenir vendor had probably slipped it inside the bag as a present.

Ren moved closer to take a look inside. It was a waxy paste, a shade of red as bright as the sun. It was a gorgeous color, and it smelled like roses.

"Wanna try it on?" Suki offered jokingly.

Ren wanted to say yes, but didn't know if it was okay or if it would be weird. Make-up was a girly thing all over the world, as far as he knew. Would Suki think it's weird? Oh, she would definitely think that. But she just laughed, reading Ren like an open book, and put her finger in the paste and then brushed it on the center of his lips.

"It suits you," she said with fondness in her eyes. Ren went inside the house to look at himself in the mirror.

"Suki, you're too nice to him," Sokka said grumpily. He had been looking at them from a distance, shading himself under the only tree in the courtyard.

"Sokka, there's no reason to be jealous," she said with a small smirk. She went to hug him. He took her in her arms and mumbled something inaudible against her neck.

In the bathroom, Ren looked at himself in the mirror. He cupped his face. His crimson red lips made him look completely different, and he liked it a lot. Looking at the short mass of feathery hair on his head, a wave of sorrow came washing up on the shore of his heart. He swallowed down, pushing it away. He wished he still had long hair. He glanced at the closet, and slowly gathered the courage to open it. The day before, he had spotted some pretty fabric peeking between the piles of clothes. He pulled it out. It was indeed a girl's dress, but it was far too small for him to wear. He sighed and folded it back. Suki was waiting for him outside, anyway.

"Oh, there you are!" she said when he came back. "Ready for your first lesson?"

Ren nodded happily and bowed to her, greeting his new Master. She showed him a series of graceful motions that ended with a very sharp snap of the fan.

Ren gasped. He couldn't help but whisper "it's so beautiful," making Suki giggle. Sokka rolled his eyes so hard it looked like they would fly off.

_Can't wait for Zuko to be back so I can finally have my girlfriend to myself._


	37. Chapter 37

Ren and Suki spent the next two days practicing together, while Aang was training his earthbending with Toph and Sokka was mostly alternating between eating, napping and taking dips into the ocean.

"Sokka, I think you should train too," Aang said on the second day during dinner.

Sokka mumbled something about not having a training partner, and Ren smirked.

"Wanna duel with me tomorrow?" he asked.

Grumpy boy Sokka finally smiled at him for the first time since the week started.

A loud groan came down from the sky right at the same time. Zuko and Katara were back!

Aang ran to where they landed. "Katara! Are you okay?" he asked when he saw how down she looked.

"I'm doing fine," she answered coldly.

Zuko took Aang aside and told him what happened. They had found the old captain of the Fire Nation southern raiders, the captain who killed Katara's mother. He had retired and was living with his mother. When Katara found him, she almost killed him on the spot, but she stopped herself right before hitting him. The piece of shit tried to exchange his mother's life for his own, and tried to make Katara have pity for him. She decided than he wasn't worth bloodying her hands over and in the end she spared him.

Aang went back to her and put his hand over her shoulder. "Zuko told me what you did. Or what you didn't, I guess," he said, scratching his head. "I'm proud of you."

Katara looked at him in the eyes. "I wanted to do it. I wanted to take out all my anger at him, but I couldn't." She lowered her head. "I don't know if it's because I'm too weak to do it, or... if it's because I'm strong enough not to."

"You did the right thing," Aang smiled softly. "Forgiveness is the first step you have to take to begin healing."

Katara's face hardened. "But I didn't forgive him. I'll never forgive him..." she glanced at Zuko, "... but I am ready to forgive you," she told him, and gave him a pat on the shoulder then walked away.

Zuko stayed behind with Aang. "You were right, violence wasn't the answer," he said.

"It never is," Aang replied.

"Then I have a question for you." Zuko looked at the younger boy sternly. "What are you gonna do when you face my father?"

A chill ran down Aang's back. What could he answer to that? He had no idea, of course he had no idea. The monks had always taught him that violence was never the answer, and that all lives were sacred. He had never eaten meat, he had apologized and prayed for the insects he had crushed while he walked, and he had made sure that he would only ever knock out his enemies instead of killing them. But would that work against the Fire Lord? It wasn't enough, wasn't it? Those kind of thoughts had been infesting Aang's nightmares for weeks now, and as expected, the following night didn't go better.

The next morning, Ren, Zuko and Aang rose with the sun. When they got up at the end of the sun salute, Sokka was waiting for Ren, black meteorite sword in hand. Ren smirked.

"Sokka, why are you awake already?!" Aang said.

Sokka had _never_ been an early riser, that was one of the last things Aang was sure of. But before he could get an answer, a loud _clang_ resonated in the courtyard, and Aang saw Sokka blocking both of Ren's sabers with struggle.

"Hey that wasn't fair!" Sokka blurted. "Where did you get your sabers all of a sudden? I wasn't ready!"

"It's a duel, Sokka! I told you to come prepared!" Ren's eyes were burning with passion. He stepped back and took a defensive stance. "No time for hesitation, that's how I fight!" he taunted Sokka with a wink.

Zuko pfft-ed behind them and turned around to face Aang. "Let's get our training started."

Aang nodded, and did the series of motions Zuko had taught him just before he went away with Katara. Zuko winced.

"More ferocious," he growled.

Aang tried again.

"Imagine striking through your opponent's heart," Zuko advised sternly.

Aang put more energy into his moves.

"Now let me hear you roar like a tiger-dillo!" Zuko roared himself.

Aang extended his arms and roared shyly, a little flame coming out of both his hands and his mouth. "Rarr!"

"... That sounded pathetic!" Zuko exclaimed.

"Who wants a nice cool glass of watermelon juice?" Katara arrived with two giant glass in her hands, followed by Suki and Toph who were also carrying some.

"Ooh, ooh, me, me!" Aang ran up to her, but was caught by the back of the collar by Zuko.

"Hey, lesson's not over yet! Get back here!"

"Come on Zuko, just take a break, what's a big deal?" Toph said, grinning.

"Fine," Zuko groaned and released Aang. "If you want to lounge around like a bunch of snail-sloths all day, then go ahead."

Ren took a glance at Zuko walking away and thought 'he really is in a bad mood today'. He dodged a swipe of Sokka's sword above his head.

Sokka grinned and said "who's the snail-sloth again?" and charged forward.

But inside, he wasn't really that confident. He had thought Ren's fighting style would be similar to Master Piandao's, but it was completely different and much more reminiscent of Jet. And Sokka had never fought directly against Jet. Also, Ren was fighting with two sabers against Sokka's only sword, and although he was probably not fighting full out, Ren was still incredibly _fast_.

After a few minutes, Sokka's endurance ran out, and he started really struggling. Ren got the upper hand and finally threw him down on the ground, victorious. Sokka didn't expect the fight to actually last that long, and seeing that Ren was at least a little out of breath, he beamed. Ren went to put down his sabers and ran back to Sokka, reaching down to pull him up, but Sokka pulled him down instead and started wrestling. As much as Ren was a good swordsperson, because he was so small he was a terrible wrestler, and Sokka got his revenge far quicker than he expected. He nailed Ren to the ground with his whole body weight and grinned.

" _No time for hesitation, that's how I fight_ ," Sokka repeated his own words to Ren.

"Do you know what else I always say?" Ren smirked, " _anything is fair game_ ," he whispered seductively, and used a new trick Suki had taught him to lock Sokka's neck between his thighs. Sokka's face landed right in front of his crotch, and it made the younger boy yelp with embarrassment.

"No! Ah! Go away! Let me go!" Sokka was waving his hands in the air, not knowing where to grab Ren to push him away. There was an extremely high chance that he would grab exactly where he absolutely didn't want to grab, so he just shrieked instead. He turned a dark shade of red all over his face and chest as Ren wiggled just enough to tease him even more.

Suki, who had been watching the whole scene, cleared her throat rather loudly and made Ren jump to his feet. _Shit, yeah, forgot about not being too gay in public!_

"Want some melon juice?" she asked, obviously to avoid talking about what had just happened.

Ren nodded shyly, and pulled Sokka up, for real this time. They went to sit in the shade with their friends and enjoyed their drink.

Zuko came back a while later, visibly having taken a dip in the ocean, hair still sticking to his forehead. He looked even more mad.

"What's the matter?" Katara asked.

Ren thought it felt so weird hearing Katara talk to Zuko normally. Until the day before, she was always either avoiding him, ignoring him or shading him. It felt refreshing finally hearing her be nice to him. _She doesn't know yet that it's a terrible idea to ask him why he's in a bad mood though._

"What's the matter with _me_? What's the matter with _you guys_!" Zuko erupted. "How can you sit around drinking melon juice when Sozin's comet is only three days away?"

Everybody stared at him, dead silent.

"Why are you looking at me like I'm crazy?!"

Aang finally replied, "about Sozin's comet... I was actually gonna wait to fight the Fire Lord until after it came."

"After?!" Zuko couldn't believe his ears.

"I'm not ready. I need more time to master firebending."

"And frankly," Toph added, "your earthbending could still use some work too."

"... So," Zuko said, looking at everyone, "you all knew Aang was gonna wait?"

Ren and Suki shook their head, but none of the others did.

"Honestly," Sokka said, "if Aang tries to fight the Fire Lord right now, he's gonna loose! No offense, I mean." Aang still squinted at him.

"The whole point of fighting the Fire Lord before the comet was to stop the Fire Nation from winning the war," Katara explained. "But they pretty much won the war when they took Ba Sing Se. Things can't get any worse."

Zuko lowered his head, and it worried Ren greatly. "You're wrong," he said, "it's about to get worse than you can ever imagine."

A hundred years earlier, a comet later named as 'Sozin's comet' gave all firebenders the power of a hundred suns. When it came down, Zuko's grand-father Fire Lord Sozin used its power to wipe out the Air Nomads. This time, Fire Lord Ozai was going to use it to end the whole Earth Kingdom permanently. The plan was to use airships to rain fire over the land, a fire that would destroy everything. In the Fire Lord's words: from the ashes, a new world would be born, a world in which all the lands would be Fire Nation, and he would be the supreme ruler of everything.

"I wanted to speak out against this terrifying plan, but I'm ashamed to say I didn't," Zuko said.

Katara dropped to her knees. "I can't believe this."

"What am I gonna do?" Aang asked.

"I know you're scared," Zuko reached for his shoulder, "and I know you're not ready to save the world, but if you don't defeat the Fire Lord before the comet comes... there won't be a world to save anymore."

"Then what didn't you tell me sooner?!" Aang blew up.

"No one told me you changed plans!"

Aang rubbed his face with his whole strength.

Katara stood up again. "It's gonna be hard, Aang, but you're not alone. We're all in this together."

"Yeah," Toph sparked up, "if we all fight the Fire Lord together, we got a shot at taking him down!"

"All right!" Sokka beamed, "Team Avatar is ready! Air, water, earth, fire, sabers, sword and fans!" He gesticulated in each person's direction and took a final pose with Suki in his arm, pointing at the sky with a palm leaf that was lying around.

Aang snorted, and straightened his back. "Fighting the Fire Lord is gonna be the hardest thing we've ever done together," he said, "but I wouldn't want to do it any other way."

Katara smiled, and went to give him a hug. Toph, Sokka and Suki joined in, and Ren got pulled in too.

"Get over here, Zuko," Katara said, "being part of the group also means being part of group hugs!"

Zuko groaned, but joined in anyway.


	38. Chapter 38

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut after Ren's dream.

They decided on a practice session. Toph was to play the Fire Nation's role, while all the others would attack at once. The target was a scarecrow named Melon Lord, planted right on top of a hill.

"So I get to chuck flaming rocks at all of you?" Toph beamed when she heard the plan.

Sokka grinned. "Whatever makes the training feel more realistic!" he said.

_Sweetness!_

Of course, of course, Toph laughed evilly throughout the whole ordeal. She dipped several large boulders into sap and lit them on fire. Suki and Sokka launched their attack first, trying to draw the fire away. Toph earthbended some fake soldiers and threw them at the two teens, but Sokka and Suki wouldn't be stopped that easily. Feeling with her feet that they had broken through her first defenses, Toph threw a burning boulder in their direction. Suki dodged, but Sokka almost got crushed.

"WATCH IT, TOPH!!!" he yelled.

"I am not Toph! I am Melon Lord! Hahahahaha!" she laughed hysterically.

Katara, Zuko and Ren ran forward, dodging flaming boulders along the way, making Toph concentrate on them while her earth soldiers followed Suki and Sokka.

"Now Aang!" Sokka yelled.

Aang jumped up and threw himself down on Melon Lord, staff ready to crush his melon head. But when he landed, he froze and stopped his staff right before it reached the fruit. All of his friends stopped in their tracks.

"What are you waiting for?" Ren shouted. "Take him out!"

Aang shook his head in defeat. "I can't."

Ren and Sokka walked up to him, visibly annoyed.

"What's wrong with you?" Sokka asked. "If this was the real deal, you'd be shot full of lightning right now."

"I'm sorry," Aang said, "but it didn't feel right. I didn't feel like myself."

Ren took out his saber and sliced Melon Lord's head right in the middle. The two melon slices exploded on the ground in a loud squishy noise. "There," he said coldly.

Aang looked at him and then at the fruit, eyebrows raised on their foreheads.

Ren's tone was ice cold. "That's how it's done," he said, and walked away.

During dinner that night, Katara arrived triumphantly, a scroll in her hands.

"I have a surprise for everyone!" she announced. "I was looking for cooking pots in the attic, and I found this!"

She unrolled the scroll and revealed an illustration of a Fire Nation baby playing on the beach.

"Look at baby Zuko!" she said with a grin, "isn't he cute?"

Everybody giggled, but Zuko remained stern.

"Oh, lighten up! I'm just teasing," she told him.

Zuko sighed. "That's not me," he said. "That's my father."

The mood suddenly darkened. This cute baby was... the Fire Lord? Their enemy?

"But he looks so sweet and innocent?" Suki said.

"Well, that sweet little kid grew up to be a monster," Zuko replied, "and the worst father in the history of fathers."

"... but he's still a human being," Aang added. He had been eating by himself, away from the group, unable to look at his friends since the practice session.

"You're going to defend him?" Zuko said.

"No, I agree with you: Fire Lord Ozai is a horrible person, and the world would probably be better off without him... but there's gotta be another way."

Ren couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes.

Aang continued talking. "This goes against everything I learned from the monks! I can't just go around wiping out people I don't like!"

"Sure you can!" Sokka said. "You're the Avatar! If it's in the name of keeping balance, I'm pretty sure the universe will forgive you!"

Aang snapped. "This isn't a joke, Sokka! None of you understands the position I'm in!"

"Aang, we're just trying to help!" Katara snapped back.

Aang pointed his finger at her. "Then when you figure out a way for me to beat the Fire Lord without taking his life, I'd love to hear it!"

Ren cut him off with a loud sigh. His voice resonated in the wind, suddenly feeling ice cold. "What are you saying? Didn't you drown Admiral Zhao? and the entire fleet that was sent to the North Pole? I heard you borrowed the ocean spirit power and sank every ship. And now you're afraid of killing one man?"

_How hypocritical._

Ren's eyes were as piercing as steel. Everybody could hear what he was thinking. Aang didn't know what to say, and left without a word.

"Don't walk away from this!" Katara said, and started following him, but Zuko caught her by the shoulder.

"Let him go", he said. "He needs to sort things out by himself."

During the night, Ren dreamed of his mother. She was sitting on a beach, singing one of those ancient songs that were full of words neither of them knew the meaning of. Next to them, a young monk was meditating in front of four candles. The voice of Ren's mother progressively got deeper and richer, and drums coming from the horizon resonated around them all. The young monk got up, and walked to the sea. He entered the water slowly, and swam once it was too deep to walk. He crossed the sea and reached a lush island, entering the forest without any hesitation. Ren followed him, and entered the sea. Once he was chest-deep in the water, he suddenly felt the sand under his feet disappear. Hands of water pushed him down to drown him. Ren called for the island, called for his mother, called for help but none came.

"You swore to never come back," the island told Ren with the voice of a hundred echoes. "Keep your word, and I'll keep mine."

Ren woke up in a shiver, and opened his eyes. It was still dark outside, but the sunrise was near. Zuko was sleeping snuggled close to him, face against his neck. Ren savored the warmth that he had missed so much. They had reunited for two weeks already, but Ren couldn't forget the cold, winter-like feeling of his months away from Zuko. The lingering loneliness was always threatening to overwhelm him in those quiet peaceful moments. Deep in his heart, the fear of loosing Zuko again was almost seething, waltzing around his every thoughts, his every nightmares.

The first of Agni's rays pierced through the horizon, and Zuko arose with it. Opening his eyes just slightly, he noticed Ren's gaze on him and it made him smile. He snuggled even closer, kissing Ren's neck and cheek and ear, hands lacing with the short white hair behind his nape.

"Slept well?" Ren asked.

It had been days since he had last seen Zuko in such a good mood. It was easy to understand why, they were in quite a difficult situation and something big was coming up soon. Ren really didn't want to think about it now, so he focused his mind back on Zuko instead.

Zuko mumbled something inaudible, and then moved on top of Ren to give him a deep kiss that left no doubt as to what was on his mind. His morning wood was poking Ren's hip in earnest.

"I dreamt of you," Zuko said, lips brushing against Ren's, voice coarse from sleep.

Ren only had to raise an eyebrow to let Zuko know how intrigued he was. But Zuko hadn't really thought that far before talking, and he suddenly got shy and sealed his lips together. Ren rolled him on his back, taking over.

"So you're gonna tease me like that and not deliver?" he said, pretending to be mad.

Zuko gulped. Ren's pretense was affecting him much more than he would have liked to admit. Ren saw the effect he had, and something unleashed in his mind. He manhandled Zuko until he was above him, facing his groin, ass straddling Ren's chest, knees on each side of his torso. Zuko's hole was incontestably on display, for Ren's private enjoyment only, and Zuko knew any effort he could make to hide himself would only make his hole very visibly twitch right in front of his lover's face. And he secretly adored that thought.

"Suck," is all what Ren said, and it sent an electric shock down Zuko's spine.

Zuko took a few seconds to react, so Ren smacked his ass in a loud but mostly painless clap, and it snapped Zuko back to reality. That... that was also something he could get used to, even though he wasn't ready to ask for it yet.

He bent forward, nuzzling Ren's hard cock and stroking it tentatively with one hand, his other hand supporting himself on the mattress. He closed his eyes and let Ren's scent overwhelm him as he licked up the whole shaft in one large swipe of the tongue.

"Wait, can you get me the oil first?" Ren said, breaking the intensity for a second.

Zuko chuckled as he sat up and reached for the bedside table, where their half-empty bottle of oil had been left. Ren used that opportunity to pull him over his face, and started eating Zuko out without mercy.

Zuko pushed his head back and moaned shamelessly. He still had a pinch of lucidity left to remember to lift himself up enough that Ren wouldn't suffocate, but if Ren and Zuko could agree on one thing, is that it would probably be the nicest death either of them could get, buried in the other's ass.

Ren presented his right hand in front of Zuko, trying to find the oil bottle, and gestured something lewd. Zuko quickly got the hint, and took a few slow breaths, trying to get back enough sanity that he could concentrate on lubing his lover's fingers and not spill too much oil on the bed. As soon as that tedious job was done, Zuko's face was back down on Ren's groin, mouth full of his cock.

Ren used the new angle to bury two fingers inside Zuko, joining his tongue. He pulled back after while, fingers still inside, and used his other hand to spread Zuko's ass wider. His hole was deforming with every squeeze, and it snapped the rest of Ren's sanity out of his mind.

Zuko whined as Ren pulled himself out of his mouth and crawled under him to take him from behind. He entered in a slow but steady push, and only stilled himself once he was settled in as deep as he could go.

"You're good, Zuko, you're so good. You know that?"

Ren's praises sent an uncontrollable shiver down Zuko's spine. He could feel his lover's voice vibrating through his skin, like it was short-cutting directly from his ears to his groin. Zuko's cock was leaking precum already, even as it had been left completely untouched.

Ren massaged Zuko's thighs and hips and butt, helping him relax. It was the first time he was penetrating him with that few preparations, and Ren didn't want to hurt him. He reached for Zuko's nipples, pinching and twisting them both, a dragged-out moan coming from his lover's throat, hoarse and hazy.

 _His nipples are really underused_ , Ren mentally took note.

He groped Zuko's peck with his left hand and focused his finger work on Zuko's right nipple, flicking it, tracing its shape, pinching the hard nob and then back to flicking it. Ren wanted to suck on it so bad, but he also wanted to rail Zuko from the back.

_What a problem to have!_

Zuko was far lost in pleasure by now, only able to babble Ren's name and unintelligible sounds. Ren slid his cock slowly out of Zuko's hole, tentatively checking if he wasn't hurting him, and the prince's mouth produced a litany of moans that gave Ren confidence.

He slid back in, cock dragging against Zuko's prostate slowly. In this position, almost every thrust would be hitting it nail on the head. Zuko sobbed in expectation. The tip of his poor cock, having yet to be touched, brushed against the bed sheet and it sent down such a strong shiver down Zuko's groin that he couldn't stop himself and reached for it. But Ren caught his hand mid-air, earning a loud whine from Zuko, and pined his wrist to the bed.

Before Zuko could complain, Ren pulled out entirely and then entered him back to the hilt in a loud smack. Zuko felt like he was going to pass out. Ren repeated the motions several times, hips clapping vulgarly against Zuko's ass with every thrust. They were so loud, so much louder than usual, and Zuko was infinitely thankful for Ren's soundproofing skills, because not only did he not have to hold back what were quickly becoming screams, but Ren _talked_ , and Zuko _needed_ to hear his every word.

"You feel so good it's making me crazy, I feel like I'm loosing my mind when I'm inside you, I feel like the whole world could disappear and I wouldn't care because I have you-" He shoved Zuko's head down onto the mattress, muffling his moans against the sheets. "You're mine," Ren growled, biting down hard on Zuko's shoulder.

Zuko rolled his eyes back in pleasure, loosing himself on Ren's words and his stinging bite.

Nothing else mattered anymore.

Nothing, not even the sound of the door opening, not even the loud gasp that Sokka let out, not even his eyes widening and his eyebrows reaching the ceiling.

For a split second, Ren’s deep desire to show Zuko off took over his mind, and he yanked him up, pulling on his hair. Little did he know this would instantly trigger Zuko’s orgasm, making him whine so loud his voice echoed through the whole house.His swollen dick spewed ropes and ropes of thick cum all over the bed and the floor, while his eyes rolled back and his hips shook uncontrollably.

Sokka... saw... everything.

Every single little detail of Zuko’s orgasm flooded his eyes, his ears, even his nose. He couldn’t stop looking at the gorgeous muscles flexing, at the lewd cum dripping everywhere, at the face crying and drooling and glistening with sweat. He couldn’t stop hearing the husky voice moan shamelessly. He couldn’t stop smelling the filthy yet enticing smell of exhaustion and pleasure.

_Oh spirits, oh spirits, oh spirits, oh spirits!_

Sokka dashed outside and sat on the stone pathway, head in his hands, his breath on fire.

 _I’m only sixteen!!!_ he screamed in his mind.

Zuko was a guy!!! There was absolutely NO WAY he was attracted to those meaty _thighs_ , and those pink _nipples_ , and those round and plump _balls_ , and that big fat juicy _sausage_ spilling white cream everywhere. And those _abs_ , too. Zuko had waaay too many abs. Much too many abs for a human. Yes, there should only be a maximum of two abs visible at the same time. More than that and it gets confusing.

"Sokka, are you okay?" Suki asked from outside the courtyard.

"i'M NoT!" his voice squeaked.

She looked at him, really confused, and left him alone.

Later, Zuko and Ren came out and started their sun salute in the courtyard, chest bare. Sokka was thankfully long gone, because he wouldn't have survived the sight of the obvious bite mark on Zuko's left shoulder. When Suki, Toph and Katara came back to the villa, they waited until both teens got up from their prayer before they spoke.

"Aang has disappeared," Katara said, jaw tight.


	39. Chapter 39

"He left his staff," Suki added, Aang's unopened glider in her hands.

Zuko frowned. "He can't be that mad about yesterday, can he?"

"No," Katara said, "he wouldn't be that childish. He must have had a good reason to leave."

Ren bit his lip. "I shouldn't have been so harsh."

"Let's search his room again," Suki said, and pulled Ren by the hand. Zuko raised his eyebrow at their closeness.

There were meditation candles left on the balcony. Four of them. Ren immediately thought about his dream from the night before. _This can't be a coincidence_. He looked down the balcony, and as he expected, there were steps leading toward the sea. He jumped down and ran.

"Ren!" Zuko shouted.

The four friends quickly followed and when they caught up with him, Ren was standing chest-deep into the sea. He was gazing at the horizon, looking for something that wasn't there. Zuko and Katara swam up to him.

"He's gone," Ren said, eyes glazed with an indescribable emotion.

"It's okay, we'll scour the island," Zuko said, cupping his cheek.

"No," Ren whispered, "he's _gone_."

Katara's heart sank. "What do you mean?"

Ren snapped back to reality. "Gone. Just gone. He's not in this world anymore. Didn't you see the tracks leading toward the sea? They're his."

All three of them went back to the beach. Indeed, the steps all lead to the water, and there was no track going the other direction. Aang had entered the sea, and hadn't come back yet.

"We'll have to wait for his return," Ren said.

"There's no time!" Katara bursted. "We have to search for him!"

Ren sighed. He couldn't explain why, but he knew there was no point searching for Aang. Deep in his heart, Ren knew exactly were the Avatar currently was, and none of them could ever reach this place.

 _You swore to never come back_ , the voice of a hundred echoes resonated in all of his body.

Fortunately, Sokka arrived right at that moment, bringing Ren back to reality. They told him about what they had found.

"What do we do now?" Sokka panicked, "What if he doesn't come back before the comet? How are we gonna defeat the Fire Lord without the Avatar? Aah! Spirits, we're completely screwed!"

Ren and Zuko glanced at each other.

"No," Zuko said, solemn, "there is someone else."

Sokka, Suki and Katara looked up to him, eyes suddenly full of hope.

"But I don't know how to find him," he said, and they all slouched down again.

"I do."

Everyone turned to Ren.

"Sokka," Ren said, "do you still have that Pai Sho tile Master Piandao gave you?"

"I- I- Yes! I have it, just give me a minute!" Sokka came back soon after with a small Fire Nation silk pouch, from which he pulled out a rather standard-looking tile of Pai Sho. It was the tile of the lotus.

"How is this gonna help?" Zuko frowned. Did Ren know things about his uncle that he didn't?

Ren wore his most facetious smile and said, "A good game of Pai Sho can open any door."

They went to the nearby town and Ren sat at the Pai Sho table in the tavern, waiting for an opponent. Soon after, an old uncle challenged him, and as his first move, Ren put down the lotus tile in the center of the board. Zuko wasn't very good at Pai Sho, but he knew this was a very strange first move. The uncle's eyes widened, he scanned Ren from head to toe and then smiled mysteriously.

They started playing like it was a dance, each of them putting down tiles in a steady rhythm, mirroring each other with fluttering fingers, until all the tiles were placed down. The entire board suddenly represented a lotus flower. Zuko had never seen anyone play Pai Sho like that.

The uncle bowed down quite low and went to the room in the back. Ren followed him, leaving all of his friends dumbfounded in the middle of the tavern. Half an hour later, he came back triumphantly.

"We'll need Appa," he announced, and told them the infos he had gotten. The Order of the White Lotus, a secret society that Iroh was a notorious member of, had settled camp in the mountains outside Ba Sing Se.

The group gathered their belongings and took off on Appa. Sokka took the reigns first. The rest of the group started chatting, all sitting on Appa's large saddle.

"Do you think Aang left because he's mad we didn't invite him to our date?" Toph asked.

Ren chuckled. "I don't think he is."

"When was that?" Zuko asked, intrigued. He was surprised at himself for not feeling jealous at all.

"When you were gone with Katara," Ren said. "All four of us went shopping in town. It was just an excuse to get out of the house."

"Ren and Suki spent HOURS digging through a box of wooden fans!" Toph exclaimed.

"Oh, so that's where they come from?" Zuko asked.

Ren rummaged through his bag and pulled out the two fans he had picked for himself. One had a phoenix pattern while the other was painted with a large wave. "They're pretty, aren't they?"

Zuko hummed, looking more at Ren than at the fans. He loved seeing his eyes sparkle like that. Ren started chatting with Suki about the fans' patterns, explaining to her what he had read about them. Both were traditional Fire Nation symbols, and Suki learnt a lot about Fire Nation art history thanks to Ren's explanations. All the other teens yawned and settled down. There was a long road ahead.

Zuko fell asleep on Ren's lap not long after the sunset. Toph and Suki followed suit soon after, Suki using Toph's belly as a pillow. Katara took Appa's reigns, unable to sleep because of her worry for Aang. Ren and Sokka started chatting, shoulder to shoulder, voices soft enough that they wouldn't wake up anyone.

"So, what are you gonna do once all of this is over?" Ren asked. "You're going back to the South Pole?"

"I..." Sokka frowned. "To be honest, I don't really know. I want to go back with my dad, but maybe Aang will still need my help." He looked at the horizon, lost in his thoughts for a moment. "What about you?"

"I'll try to find an apprenticeship as a seamstress. I'd like to have my own shop one day."

"Oh?" Sokka looked really surprised. "I thought you'd stay with Zuko, as his bodyguard or something." He glanced at the prince's sleeping face, and had to repress his smile super hard.

"I thought about it," Ren said, "but I don't want to just be a warrior all my life. I want to create things, not just destroy them."

"Hey, being a warrior isn't just about destroying stuff!"

"No, it's about destroying lives too." Ren's eyes were severe, but softened after just a second. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be so harsh."

"No offense taken."

Ren's words lingered in Sokka's mind, though. He lay down on the saddle and glanced at Ren's short white hair, shining in the windy moonlight.

"... Do you know a girl named Yue, by any chance? Have you ever been to the North Pole?"

Ren turned his head to look at his friend. "Uhm, no and no. Who is she?"

"Ah, never mind. She had white hair just like you, and you remind me of her."

"My mom had white hair too. And she told me her mother had it too. I think it's hereditary."

"Do you still remember her face?"

"Not really. In my dreams, she just looks like me."

"I can't remember my mom's face either," Sokka admitted. "In all my memories, she just has Katara's face. And her voice too. You're lucky you remember your mother's songs."

Ren smiled to himself. "I dreamt about her yesterday. She was singing again. It felt magical."

"If she sounds anything like you, then yeah, she must sounds magical!" Sokka blurted.

It made Ren blush so hard Sokka could clearly see it in the dark.

"D-d-don't say that, all of a sudden!" Ren stuttered.

Sokka grinned, and was about to tease him again when Katara shushed them both. They had raised their voices a little bit too much.

"We should sleep," Ren said after clearing his throat. He delicately lifted the prince's head off his lap, and lay down between him and Sokka.

"Good night," Sokka said, resting on his side facing Ren, arm folded under his head as a pillow, and he definitely didn't think about moving just a bit closer.

"Good night," Ren replied, resting on his side facing Sokka, using his bag as a pillow, and he definitely didn't think about intertwining their fingers together.


	40. Chapter 40

A few hours before the sunrise, they landed near the spot Ren had lead them to, to get some breakfast before looking for the Order of the White Lotus' campsite. Zuko and Ren went to find some dry wood for the fire, while Sokka went to fetch water. When the two oldest teens came back, they found Katara, Suki and Toph surrounded by unknown soldiers pointing spears at them. An older man was facing them, interrogating the three kids, sword pulled out. Ren's face lit up when he saw the blade.

"Master Piandao!" he called, and ran to meet the man. Of course he would recognize his master's sword even in the dark!

"Ren!" Piandao turned around. "Prince Zuko!"

Zuko smiled widely at his old master, startling him. How Zuko had changed! They bowed to each other.

"What's going on?" Toph asked, hearing how friendly they were to each other.

Sokka came back carrying a large bucket of water and dropped it all over the ground when he saw Piandao. His jaw too dropped at least as low.

"This is our sword master," Zuko explained, "and the man who raised Ren," he added, softly glancing at him as Piandao patted Ren's hair.

"MASTER!" Sokka loudly sobbed as he suddenly hugged Piandao.

Piandao laughed warmly and returned his hug.

"Wait," Sokka said and pulled back, "what are you doing here?"

"What are _you_ doing here, is what I should ask you," Piandao replied, raising an eyebrow. He turned to his first disciple. "There must be a good reason for your coming, Ren."

Ren nodded, solemn. "We need to meet with the Grand Lotus, Iroh of the Fire Nation."

Zuko opened his eyes wide at the title Ren used.

Piandao brought them to the campsite. There was a rather large amount of tents, all adorned with a white lotus motif. The Order of the White Lotus was an order founded on peace, and beauty, and philosophy, and the members were masters from all nations, allying together to fight against evil.

"Where... where is he?" Zuko asked, nervous, glancing at all the tents.

He had betrayed Iroh back in Ba Sing Se, and had treated him like a prisoner after his return to the Fire Nation. He had done all of the worst things he could possibly do to his uncle. And he was not looking forward to meeting him again, because he knew there was no chance he would be forgiven. He didn't deserve to be. But he would apologize anyway. If he didn't, he would never be able to lift his head up ever again.

"Zuko, are you okay?" Ren asked, patting his shoulder.

Zuko sat down on the grass in front of his uncle's tent. "No, I'm not okay," he said. "My uncle hates me, I know it." Ren frowned, about to retort something, but Zuko continued speaking. "He loved me and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him. I still can't believe you've forgiven me. How can I be lucky enough that he forgives me too? That's impossible."

"Zuko..." Ren said softly, "You're sorry for what you did, right?"

"More sorry than I've been about anything in my entire life."

"Then he'll forgive you," Ren said, and took Zuko's hand, "because he loves you too."

There was still an hour left before sunrise, so when Zuko entered his uncle's tent, he found the old man snoring, a calm smile on his face. Zuko sat down, and started meditating. When Agni's first ray peeked through the horizon, Iroh rose with it. As he stretched his back, he took a quick glance behind him and noticed his nephew's presence. He stilled.

Zuko gulped. "Uncle?" he called softly, and took a deep breath. "I know you must have mixed feelings about seeing me."

His voice broke, and tears started pearling in the corner of his eyes. "But I want you to know... I am so, _so_ sorry, Uncle."

He stopped talking for a while, head down. "I am so sorry and ashamed of what I did. I don't know how I can ever make it up to you, but I-"

The last time Zuko had apologized kneeling down on the ground with tears flowing down his cheeks, he had met a blazing hand of fire as he had looked up, that scarred him for life.

When he looked up this time, Iroh had pulled him by the collar and was hugging him tight, tears pouring down his cheeks. He hummed softly, head resting on his nephew's shoulder.

"How can you forgive me so easily?!" Zuko asked. "I thought you'd be furious with me!"

"I was never angry with you," Iroh said as he patted Zuko's head, "I was sad, because I was afraid you'd lost your way."

"I did lose my way."

Iroh pulled back and made his nephew sit straight in front of him. "But you found it again," he said, voice full of emotion, "and you did it by yourself."

Outside the tent, carrying a platter with hot tea on it, Ren smiled.

***

All the Gaang sat in a circle outside on the grass, sharing their breakfast with Iroh.

"Uncle," Zuko said, "you're the only person other than the Avatar who can possibly defeat the Fire Lord."

Iroh only hummed.

"We need you to come with us!"

"No, Zuko. It won't turn out well," Iroh said.

"You can beat him! And we'll be here there to help!"

"Even if I did defeat Ozai," Iroh said, "and I don't know that I could... it will be the wrong way to end the war. History will see it as just more senseless violence, a brother killing a brother to grab power. The only way for this war to end peacefully is for the Avatar to defeat the Fire Lord."

"And then... then would you come and take your rightful place on the throne?"

Iroh inhaled. "No," he said, solemn. "Someone _new_ must take the throne. An idealist with a pure heart, and unquestionable honor. It has to be _you_ , Prince Zuko. Only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation."

Zuko looked deep in his thought for a moment, then bowed down. "I'll try, Uncle," he said, as he felt cold fingers lacing with his own. He smiled at Ren after he sat back up.

"Sozin's comet is arriving," Iroh said, "and our destinies are upon us. When I was a boy, I had a vision that I would one day take Ba Sing Se. Only now do I see that my destiny is to take Ba Sing Se _back_ from the Fire Nation, so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."

"So that's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus," Ren said.

"Yes," Iroh nodded. "Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation, so that when the Fire Lord falls, you can assume the throne and restore peace and order... but Azula will be there, waiting for you."

Both Zuko and Ren frowned.

"I can handle Azula," Zuko said.

"Not alone," Iroh said, stern. "You'll need help."

Zuko thought carefully. "You're right," he said. "Ren, Katara, how would you like to help me put Azula in her place?"

"It would be my pleasure," Katara smirked.

Ren just nodded. There was a somber air in his eyes, an air that Zuko had never seen before.

The group then decided to send Sokka, Toph and Suki to stop the airship fleet that would burn down the Earth continent. According to the White Lotus, the island they would be departing from was only a day's journey. This meant that when Aang returned and faced the Fire Lord, they would be right there to help. Zuko, Ren and Katara flew on Appa, heading to the Fire Nation capital city. Deep in their hearts, the whole Gaang knew Aang would return in time. There was no other way.

The sky darkened in the middle of the afternoon, taking a deep crimson shade. The comet, large and bright in the chaotic landscape, slowly crossed the sky, almost peacefully.

Sokka, Suki and Toph reached the island as the airships lifted off. It was a fleet of at least twenty airships, all propelled by air balloon technology. They jumped on the closest one, and snuck inside the cabin. Toph metalbent the door to use it as a full-body armor and knocked out the entire crew, but not without resistance. One of the soldiers managed to blast a fire bolt in her direction, and Sokka and Suki were lucky they stayed outside the room, because the fire blast was so huge it filled the entire cabin. The full-body armor was indeed a good idea. Toph knocked that last soldier out, and Sokka and Suki extinguished the remaining fires.

"Time to take control of the ship," Sokka said. "Take the wheel!"

"Oh yeah, that's a great idea!" Toph said, face lighting up. "Let the blind girl steer the giant airship!"

Sokka glanced at her, dumbfounded. "... I was talking to Suki."

_Oh._

"What do we do with the remaining soldiers?" Suki asked as she took the wheel.

"Take us down closer to the water," Sokka said. "I've got an idea!"

He reached for the communication system, and cleared his throat. "Attention, crew! This is your captain speaking," he said, with his best Fire Nation accent. "Everyone, please report to the bomb bay immediately, for hot cakes and sweet cream! We have a very special birthday to celebrate!"

As soon as they were close enough to the sea, they opened the bomb bay trap and dumped the entire crew into the ocean. They weren't too far from the shore, so most of them should be okay.

Back in Ba Sing Se, the White Lotus masters launched their attack on the Fire Nation's forces. In the Fire Nation capital city, Azula was preparing for her coronation as the new Fire Lord, as Ozai had declared himself 'Phoenix King, ruler of the universe' just before he had launched his attack on the Earth Kingdom.

Suki identified the airship that was leading the whole fleet when she saw it dashing forward. It was much bigger than the other airships, and it was tackily adorned with golden flame motifs. It was undoubtedly Fire Lord Ozai, the newly self-proclaimed Phoenix King's ship. She tried to catch up to him, but her airship was much slower. Ozai was getting ahead, and reached the border of the Earth continent first. He smiled, glancing at the comet crossing the sky, and threw down a fire blast so big it looked like a giant curtain of lava falling from the sky. Soon after, the rest of the fleet started blasting the earth too, ranges of firebenders throwing gigantic flames in all directions, burning every square inch of the Earth Kingdom's ground. Sokka and Suki paled at the unstoppable force unleashing before their eyes. Toph approached a broken window, and even though she couldn't see what was happening, she could feel the heat radiating from the earth.

But all of a sudden, big boulders flew in Ozai's ship's direction, making the propellers explode. Right after that, a giant swoosh of air sliced the hot air balloon in half, and the airship slowly started to sink. Aang was back!!!

Sokka and Suki shared a glance, confident smiles on their lips. Now all they had to do was take down the rest of the fleet, while Aang faced the Fire Lord! Aang's moves gave Sokka an idea that could maybe work. He maneuvered the airship so that it was perpendicular to all of the other airships, and pushed the motors to full power. The airship started dashing toward the rest of the fleet, slicing each balloon in half. The three friends had a less than a minute to reach the top of their airship before it was over. Sokka pushed Toph and Suki up, using his hands as a ladder, but he slipped before he could climb himself. He fell down the sky, and saw his entire life scroll before his eyes. But a sudden intense pain in his entire body brought him back to reality. He had fallen on his back on one of the intact airships' platforms, right in the middle of it.

The sharp pain in his back flashed a memory of Zuko's hips getting snapped as he climaxed.

_Seriously, Sokka? That's what you're thinking about right now?_

On each side of the platform, firebenders approached Sokka, fists ready to throw fire blasts. Sokka closed his eyes, and focused on his breathing.

_I am gonna die, and the last thing I've thought about was Zuko getting his ass destroyed._

He sighed.

_Maybe this isn't so bad after all._

In the courtyard of the Fire Nation royal palace, Zuko was facing his sister in an Agni Kai, _the_ _last Agni Kai_. Zuko would come out of this fight either dead, or Fire Lord. And he would put an end to all this savagery. Azula's giant blue flames met Zuko's giant red flames, reaching high in the sky. The prince had made Katara and Ren swear that they wouldn't interfere unless they absolutely needed to. This was _his_ fight.

There was something off about his sister. He couldn't explain it, but she was slipping. He knew he could win, this time. And if he faced her alone, no one else would have to get hurt. Azula relentlessly attacked, throwing punches and kicks of fire without hesitation, and Zuko dissipated and dodged each of them. He noticed she had cut her hair, making herself look like a crazy witch. _What happened to you?_

She blasted a huge fire bolt in Zuko's direction, which he cut through. The bolt went so far it started burning the palace down, lighting her own quarters on fire. She stopped herself, hesitating for a brief instant.

"No lightning today?" Zuko taunted her.

Ren and Katara had climbed over the courtyard's wall, putting themselves far enough that the flames would reach them. But Azula had another weapon.

"Oh, I'll show you lightning!" she roared, out of breath.

She charged a lightning shot, and aimed at Zuko before she blasted it. But right as she was about to shoot, she turned to Ren and aimed for him instead.

Zuko jumped forward as soon as he understood what she was going to do, and took the whole lightning to the chest. He fell down to the ground, paralyzed.

An incredibly loud roar pierced through the flames surrounding the courtyard and Zuko felt the air vibrating around him, ground shaking. The last thing he saw was Katara's worried face over him, calling for him. His vision turned to black before he could turn his head to see what was happening behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep my friend in your prayers, friend who is reading this fic without having watched the show and has to live through the worst cliffhanger possible. I'm sorry, and I love you <3
> 
> Since we now have reached the end of the canon, I just wanted to discuss some changes I made to it.
> 
> First of all, Sokka didn't invent the hot air balloon himself. The Northern Air Temple visit still happened, but it makes no sense to me that in canon, Sokka would know that much at fifteen, especially since the Northern Air Temple is during the first season of the show and the Gaang hasn't had any free time to study about physics in any sort of library yet. There aren't that many books in the Southern Water Tribe either, so yeah, no Physics-Genius Sokka in this story, sorry. But I'm gonna give Sokka another skill, so don't worry!
> 
> I also wanted to point out that the bonding scene in Piandao's library between Ren and Zuko, where Ren puts an imprint of his hand on the back cover of the encyclopedia, mirrors the scene where Sokka draws a calligraphy with his face totally by accident. I had completely forgotten about Sokka's 'calligraphy' when I wrote this early chapter! Happy accidents are the best.
> 
> About Ren being a member of the White Lotus: of course it was a plot device to link back to Iroh, but also, it made sense to me. Ren went back to Piandao after Zuko's betrayal, and he was at that point a highly skilled warrior. And Piandao knew about Ren's special combat abilities, even though he didn't know that it was airbending. A kid capable of almost teleporting himself? That's worthy of the White Lotus' member status to me. Ren doesn't have the same grade as the masters, obviously, but objectively speaking, he is a soundbending master since he is the only soundbender!
> 
> Speaking of soundbending and airbending, I didn't want to make him too much of a Mary-Sue, so don't expect him to make much progress on the airbending aspect. He could probably get good at it at some point, but he doesn't have much interest in it. Soundbending is something that runs in his genes though, and he won't ever stop using it. Aang could learn a thing or two from him.
> 
> From now on, almost everything will be of my own invention. I took some tidbits from Korra and the comics I've read, but it's mostly my own story and the way I want to fix canon. The main focus will be Zuko, Ren, Sokka and Suki, and life in the Fire Nation after the war. I will be adding some original characters, but not too many, as I don't want to distract too much from the canon cast, which I've already trimmed down quite a lot as you have probably noticed. Also... there will be smut. Lots of it. You've been warned!

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to break this fic into two parts and turn it into a series, because it was getting too hard to tag properly. Part two is [right here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24652708)!


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